Who's That Guy With Rachel Berry?
by Copper's Mama
Summary: a rachel/puck fic. no particular episode, but after puck joined glee, and before "mash-up". rachel has a new boyfriend, and puck gets jealous! please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

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_A Puck/Rachel fic._

_(Love This Pairing!) _

_..._

_Disclaimer: Is clothing optional for Mark Salling? _

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_A/N: I just can't get enough of this pairing ... I can't recall every being this fascinated (obsessed) with a pairing before. _

_I love the idea of a jealous Puck, which is where the inspiration behind this story comes from. _

_I hope you like it, I know I'll love writing it!_

_Also, I have no idea if "Oakland High" is a real high school or not, it just sounded good. _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

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The entire school was buzzing. The glee kids were confused, the jocks were shocked, and the Cheerios were confuddled. Who was the mystery man driving Rachel Berry to school every morning? And not just driving her to school, but sometimes he would walk her to the door, and once - _once_ - he even set foot in the school to walk her to her locker.

At first everyone assumed he was a relative of some sort. He was attractive, well-built, and seemed interested in talking to her. Must be a family member.

But one day the Cheerios had been taken a break from their workout when Quinn and Britney spotted Rachel rushing to the mystery car in the parking lot - more specifically the mystery guy leaning against the mystery car - and watched in shock as he opened his arms and kissed her full on the mouth when she'd run to embrace him.

Across the field, Puck saw it happen too. He'd been trying to figure out who the dude was that had been escorting Berry around like she was the Prom Queen. Well, apparently now he had his answer. Evidently she was dating him. How she had managed to keep it to herself - and off her MySpace page - was beyond him.

Finn saw that Puck wasn't paying attention, and took the opportunity it lob the football lightly at his head.

It had the desired effect, and Puck snapped his head around. "What the hell?"

"Dude, focus," Finn chuckled, not bothering to try to see what his friend had been so intrigued by.

Puck tried to get his head back into practice, but every time he had a spare minute to think, his mind wandered to Rachel Berry and her mystery man.

_Since when do I give a rat's ass about who Rachel Berry is dating? _

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The glee members - minus Matt, Mike, Finn and Puck - all cornered Rachel before the football guys and Mr Shuester got to the room.

"Girl, you got some explaining to do," Mercedes informed her.

"What?" Rachel asked, confused and feeling trapped.

Quinn spoke, "Who's the guy?"

"What's the story?" Kurt wondered.

"W-w-where does he g-go to school?" Tina asked her.

"How did you manage to snag someone that _fine_?" Britney wanted to know.

Rachel looked between all of them. "This is all because I'm dating someone?"

They all nodded.

"Oh, for goodness sakes," she sighed, pushing through the crowd to set her bag down. "His name is Owen, he's seventeen, he just transferred to Oakland High, he's a wide-receiver, and we've been dating for three weeks. Happy?"

Quinn, Britney and Santana fixed her with death glares.

"What?" Rachel asked.

"You're dating a football player from Oakland High?" Santana asked icily.

"I believe that is what I just stated," Rachel answered slowly as though Santana were learning impaired. "Why?"

"Oakland High is only our biggest rival!" Quinn informed her, throwing her hands in the air. "How could you be so careless?"

Rachel spread her arms. "I have no idea what the big deal is."

The three Cheerios all looked at her like she was from another planet, while the others in the room slowly started to understand.

"It's like, against the code of ethics to be dating someone from a rival school," Santana told her. "Especially with the big game coming up."

"When isn't there a big game coming up?" Rachel countered.

"Do you know nothing about football?" Britney asked her.

Rachel flared her eyes. "I know it's a big of testosterone driven boys ramming into each other and throwing a silly-shaped ball around."

Quinn put a hand to her head to quel her rising headache. "Okay, you cannot tell the boys about this."

"Um, Kurt and Artie are already here," she told them.

Britney shook her head. "Not those boys. _The_ boys. Finn, Mike, Matt and Puck. If they found out, they'd blow a gasket."

"Why?" Rachel asked, annoyed.

Quinn looked her in the eye. "Just defer to our wisdom on this one, Berry. Please? For your own good. Better yet, end it with this Owen character. It can only end in tears."

"What can only end in tears?" Finn asked as the football guys walked into the room.

Rachel opened her mouth, but Mercedes clapped her hand over the smaller girl's mouth, and Quinn took the lead. "That outfit with a yellow overcoat," she fibbed hurriedly. "Just not a good combination."

Puck found it hard to believe that Rachel Berry was taking fashion advice from anyone, let alone Quinn Fabray, but he pulled out his guitar, getting lost in his thoughts.

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Owen picked Rachel up from school as usual, not failing to notice the mob of people standing by the entrance to the school as his girlfriend left.

He watched them curiously as she made her way to his car.

"Fanclub?" he wondered jokingly when she was within earshot.

Rachel rolled her eyes. "I'll tell you later."

He nodded, getting in the car after her and starting the engine. "Fun day at school?"

She rolled her eyes but added a smirk this time, giving him a quick kiss before buckling her seat belt. "The best," she commented sarcastically, her eyes wandering to the vacant football field as they left the school parking lot.

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_End of chapter 1. _

_The rest of the chapters should be longer, but I just wanted a short little intro chapter to kick it off. _

_Review are appreciated, positive or negative!_

_Until next time ...! _


	2. Chapter 2

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_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Two. _

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_Disclaimer: See ch. 1_

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_A/N: Wow. You guys are amazing. 15 reviews since I posted it last night, 9 hours ago! I checked my email this morning and I had 75 emails, 68 of which were from fanfic dot net! I'm so happy you guys are loving this story! (My Harry Potter fandom reader probably aren't too happy with Glee taking up my time, but I can't help it!) _

_Okay, so here's chapter two. I may do some backstory on Owen in this chapter or the next, and we'll find out how they met. Some Puck jealousy is a must, even if he doesn't know he's jealous. (Those ones are the best, it's so cute when they're all flustered and they think they're just annoyed, but they're really jealous) _

_Anywhoo ... enough out of me, and on with the story!_

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

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Rachel tried her best to ignore the glances and glares that the female members of glee shot her through practice, and it showed in her performance. She was completely stiff when Finn was trying to spin her or dance the choreography with her, and finally Mr Shuester stopped them.

"Okay, I think we need to change things up a bit," he told them. He scanned through the glee members, smirking when his eyes landed on one who was trying to look inconspicuous.

"Puck, front and center," he stated.

Rachel and Finn looked between Puck and Mr Shuester, trying to understand the logic behind his actions.

"Mr Shue?" Finn asked as Puck made his way up to them.

"Let's just try this out," the teacher offered. "Puck, switch places with Finn. And ... Tina, get up here with Finn."

The girl widened her eyes but did as she was told.

"Okay, now try not to focus so much on the words or the steps, but just ... _feel_ the song," Mr Shuester told them.

Rachel couldn't picture herself _feeling_ anything with Noah Puckerman, but she placated their instructor, getting into position a respectable distance away from Finn and Tina.

Mr Shuester cued up the band, and the music started. It was awkward at first, but Rachel always through herself into a new role with 100 percent effort, so she steeled her face and began to sing, invading his personal space.

Her voice meshed reasonably well with Tina's, even though the other girl's pitch was off, and she didn't sing with as much conviction.

Rachel could tell Puck wasn't giving it much of an effort, and it was starting to annoy her. When one of the steps required her to push off of him, she gave him an extra-hard shove, sending him back a few steps.

His eyes flared with annoyance, before following after her. She smirked when she realized he was finally getting into, but when he whipped her around so hard that she collided with his chest, she almost lost her voice. There was a slight hitch which only she noticed, but the look of shock in her eyes was easy for Puck to spot.

They continued with the choreography, his deeper voice resonating through the room. Finn had a good voice, but it was a ... boy's voice. It struck Rachel that Puck sang more like a man. The thought confused her, but she pushed it to the back of her mind so she could focus on the routine.

The song finally ended, and for a moment Rachel thought Puck would forget the last step, which involved picking her up, turning in a circle, putting her back down and spinning her so her back was to him.

Puck, however, didn't miss a step. His sturdy hands gripped her hips easily, lifting her into the air as though she weighed little more than a feather.

She only meant for her hands to rest on his shoulders, but they clenched of their own accord, digging into the firm flesh of his shoulder blades.

His hands tighted on her waist in response, but he completed the turn and set her down, giving her no time to think before he spun her around and stopped her in front of him with his hands on her hips. She barely remembered to spread her arms and plaster a smile on her face.

Mr Shuester clapped at the performance, congratulating both pairs, but smiling more at Rachel and Puck.

"That's what I'm talking about," he commented happily. He checked his watch, noticing that they were out of time. "Okay, work on it more for next class, and we'll see about matching everyone up to do the steps. Today was great."

He stepped out of the room, hurrying off to catch Emma before she left the school.

Rachel carefully stepped away from Puck, returning to her chair to grab her bag.

Quinn and Britney smiled, and idea quickly forming in their heads.

Rachel's phone began belting out "On My Own", and she answered it quickly.

"Owen?"

All eyes in the room turned to her, and she turned around to face the wall, ignoring them.

"Oh, you're here now? That's okay, I just finished up with Glee club. Yeah, I'll be right out, just give me a minute to get my stuff."

She paused, turning her head slightly to look at the people behind her who were still staring at her. "Um, no, I think I'll just meet you at your car. No, it's okay ... I'll explain later. Okay, bye."

She hung up the phone, sliding it back into her bag before turning around.

The Cheerios girls were fuming, the football guys looked confused, and the other glee kids stood awkwardly but still stared at her.

Finn was the first to speak up. "So, who was that?"

Rachel looked at the ground. "No one. I, uh ... gotta go."

The football guys all exchanged a look, smirking as they bolted to the door. "I think we gotta see this guy for ourselves," Puck taunted.

"What? No," Rachel tried, but they were already gone.

Rachel stood dumbfounded for a moment.

"What the hell are you waiting for?" Quinn exclaimed. "Go after them! They can't find out he's from Oakland!"

Rachel began to speed-walk out the door, but Quinn and Britney grabbed one of her arms and rushed her out to the parking lot.

They spotted his car easily, as it was one of the few left in the lot, and saw the guys making a beeline for him.

Quinn called out, "Finn, stop!" But he didn't listen.

They had slowed to a walk to seem more intimidating, but they had a considerable lead, and Rachel knew they'd get there before them.

Owen saw the groups of people coming towards him, but stood his ground. "Um, hi," he greeted as the guys grew closer.

"Hey, there," Finn replied, with a twinkle in his eyes. "How're you doing?"

"... Fine?" Owen answered. "And you are"?

"Oh, we're friends of Rachel. Just wanted to come say hey." Matt told him, sizing up the car.

"This is a pretty nice ride," Mike commented, trailing his finger along the trunk of the mustang, gathering a considerable amount of dirt.

Puck snorted. "Yeah, for a girl."

Owen looked around at the guys in front of him, and to Rachel who was making her way to him with three girls in cheerleader's outfits.

"So, this is what ... you making sure I'm good enough for your Rachel?" Owen wondered.

Finn shook his head with sarcasm in his eyes. "Not at all. We just wanted to put a name to the face. We noticed you weren't from around here."

Owen nodded. "Okay, um, I'm Owen Peters, and I go to -"

"So, this is Owen!" Quinn exclaimed, cutting him off as they caught up to them finally. "We've heard ... so much about you."

"Really?" Owen wondered.

"Really?" Puck reiterated, glancing at the blonde girl.

"Sure. Now, I'm sure that Rachel has plans and stuff, we should really let them be going." She practically shoved the short brunette into the wide receiver's arms.

Rachel would have left, but she hadn't had time to stop by her locker when they were running out of the school, and she didn't have her homework or sweater.

Quinn placed a fake smile on her face. "What's the problem, Rach?"

Puck knew there was something up when Quinn Fabray was calling her "Rach".

Rachel looked around at all the people surrounding her boyfriend's car. "Um ... I still have some stuff in my locker."

Owen glanced down at her. "A bit distracted?" he joked, gesturing to the people around them.

Rachel chuckled. "Only a little."

Quinn and the other girls started ushering the boys away. "Come on guys, let's give these two lovebirds their space." Although the look she threw back and Rachel said the exact opposite.

Puck glared at the guy as he walked away, noticing Rachel whispering something to him.

"What was that all about?" Owen asked her.

Rachel whispered, "Apparently, it's against some code of ethics to be dating someone from a rival school. And Oakland High is apparently a big rival."

"Oh, is that all," Owen brushed off, draping an arm over her shoulder as they walked into the school to get her stuff.

"That's what I said, but Quinn seems to think that if the football guys found out, there would be hell to pay." Rachel told him.

Owen shrugged. "It shouldn't matter what anyone else thinks. You're the one that told me that."

Rachel nodded. "I know. It's just ... better if they don't know you're from Oakland."

Owen rolled his eyes, but nodded. "Fine."

"Thank you," Rachel replied, letting him lean down to kiss her.

Neither noticed the pair of eyes glaring at them as he made his way to his truck.

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_End of chapter two. _

_Not much longer, I know, but I have something in mind for the next chapter that should make up for it. _

_Hope you're still liking it. You guys are amazing! _

_Reviews are appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


	3. Chapter 3

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_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Three. _

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_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: Yay, I'm so happy you guys are still enjoying this story. It makes me want to update so much sooner! (It also helps that I'm comlelete obsessed with this pairing. _

_Alright ... not much chatter about this chapter. Hopefully it'll be longer than the other ones. _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

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Puck cornered Quinn on the way back to the school, telling the others he'd back up with them. Finn hung back, standing off the side.

"Alright, spit it out," Puck demanded.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Quinn told him defensively.

Puck rolled his eyes in disbelief. "Don't bullshit me. You were acting way weird just now, so spill. Whatever it is about this "Owen" dude, give up the dirt."

Quinn looked away, hoping Finn would put an end to the conversation. "There's no dirt to give. He's just a guy."

"Uh-huh, right," Puck chuckled. "And I'm a blushing, school-girl virgin. There's no way Berry told you all about her new boyfriend. You two aren't girlfriends."

Quinn saw an opportunity to put her plan into motion. "Okay, honestly ... Rachel's not sure how long her new "relationship" is going to last. If you ask me, she's kinda ... hung up on someone else."

Puck's eyes drifted to Finn automatically.

"Not him," Quinn informed him with a roll of her eyes.

She tried walking away, but now Funn was interested too.

"So, Rachel Berry actually talked to you about dating, and boys, and ... chick stuff?" he asked his girlfriend.

Quinn nodded after a moment's hesitation. Technically, it wasn't a complete lie.

"So, then you know who this guy is?" he concluded.

Quinn sighed. "Look, he's just a guy. Just a harmless. little speck of a person, who probably won't even be in her life that much longer anyway. So why worry about it?"

Puck thought back to the kiss he's seen _Owen_ give her just over a minute ago. "It doesn't seem like she's in that much of a rush to end things," he commented, watching the two in question walk out of the school hand-in-hand.

Quinn brushed it off. "Rachel's new to the whole dating thing. And the breaking up part of it. Just give it time."

Puck rolled his eyes. "Whatever. It's not like I even care," he stated. "Just curious."

"Of course," Quinn replied, hiding a smirk.

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Rachel thought back to the day she'd met Owen, just under a month ago. It was at one of her many competitions, and she'd come in first place - of course. As she'd been making her way to her dads to get congratulated, a boy stepped in front of her.

~ "That was amazing," he told her.

"Thank you, I know," she replied, beginning to walk past him, but he stood in her way.

"I'm Owen," he introduced.

Rachel sighed, shaking his outstretched hand. "Rachel Berry."

"Well, Rachel Berry, I thought you were great up there. I would know, I've been to dozens of these things," he told her.

"You sing?" she wondered. He looked more like a jock.

"Not me, my sister," he clarified, pointing to a girl who looked to be about ten. A few age-groups below her. "She loves this whole scene."

Rachel nodded, intent on making her way to her dads.

"Well, it was nice meeting you," she said, trying to step around him once more, but he was persistent.

"I was wondering if you'd like to go for coffee some time? Get to know each other?" he offered.

Rachel narrowed her eyes, expecting it to be some sort of a joke.

"What?" he asked her.

"Why would you want to go for coffee with me?" she wondered.

He shrugged. "'Cause I find you interesting. I'm sorry if I'm being too forward, but that's just who I am. Is that such a crime?"

Rachel sighed, feeling bad for assuming the worst. "No, of course not." She shuffled around in her purse, grabbing a pen and paper and scribbling her name and number down. "You can call me sometime. If you want.

He nodded with a smile. "Definitely." ~

And he had. It had surprised Rachel when she answered the phone to hear his voice. They had chatted for a few minutes before he'd outright asked her out, and she'd surprised herself by saying yes.

They'd gone out for coffee, and then he'd asked her out to a movie the next night. Two days later, they went out again, and then he'd started driving her to school, just for an excuse to spend more time with her.

Rachel had been so swept up in the romance of it all, she hadn't stopped to think how her having a boyfriend would have an impact on her school life. They were two separate things. It was one of the things she liked so much about Owen - the fact that he went to another school.

He didn't know the Rachel Berry everyone else knew and tormented.

She sighed, rolling over in her bed as she dialed his number. She didn't care what the others thought of her ... even if it meant getting slushied by members of the glee club, she wasn't going to break up with someone just because of a silly football conflict. _Really, how silly is that?_

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Owen drove her to school every day the following week, much to Quinn's disappointment. While she was happy that Rachel had finally managed to find someone - and keep them - she wished it had been someone else. Someone in particular ... but that would take some time.

Tomorrow was the first big game of the season, and she would have to talk to Rachel.

She found her at her locker and quickly pulled her into the nearest bathroom.

"Hello, Quinn. Nice to see you, too," Rachel greeted, slightly annoyed at being dragged down the hall.

"Are you still dating Owen?" she asked her.

Rachel groaned. "Seriously? Is that all you can think about?"

Quinn nodded. "If you understood the magnitude of your actions, you would see where I'm coming from."

Rachel paused. "You know what "magnitude" means?"

Quinn glared at her, and Rachel chuckled.

"I'm kidding."

"Look, tomorrow is the big game. McKinley vs Oakland! Tell me there isn't going to be an issue about which side you'll be sitting on?"

Rachel shrugged. "I hadn't decided if I was even going, Quinn."

Quinn thought about that for a second, but then reasoned that it would mess up her plan. "No, you have to come. I mean, you're always asking the guys to take a more proactive interest in Glee. It's about time you showed the same support for them and football." She smiled internally at her own logic.

"I don't know, Quinn. Are you sure?"

Quinn nodded her head. "Definitely. But you can't sit on the visitor's side. You have to sit with us."

Rachel looked confused. "Won't you be on the field with the rest of the Cheerios?"

Quinn sighed. "You know what I mean. I mean, you have to sit with the home-team fans. It would just be unacceptable for you to sit on the other side, even if he is your boyfriend."

Rachel tried to argue, but that would put her in the position of metaphorically choosing between her new boyfriend and her glee firnds, and while she would obviously choose glee, she liked having a boyfriend, so she conceded defeat. "Fine. I',, some. I'll sit with the home team. I can't promise I'll cheer, though."

Quinn smiled. "We'll work on that."

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Rachel decided it would be best to discuss with Owen what would happen at the game.

When he drove her home from school that day, she told him about her going to the football game, but that she had to support McKinley High. He was upset, but agreed, seeing as it was her school. He promised not to parade her around and make things uncomfortable with her and her friends, but made a point of noting that he was disappointed that she couldn't be with him in front of her friends.

She agreed with him on that point, but she had also spent a considerable amount of time considering what Quinn had told her. The boys did take their football stuff pretty seriously. Not quite as seriously as she took her future stardom, but it meant a lot to them. She'd considered the lengths they'd gone to to win their first game.

If her dating a rival football player was something that upset them, she could see the benefit of keeping it to herself. However, she drew the line in two places: breaking up with him because they wanted her to, and lying outright to them if they asked her.

He kissed her cheek before she went into her house, immediately heading up to her room to rehearse the music she had Puck had been working on. If they were to be paired up again, she would be prepared.

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_End of chapter three. _

_Next chapter ... the game! _

_Hope you're still enjoying this fic, you guys have been so flattering and inspiring with your reviews! _

_Until next time ...! _


	4. Chapter 4

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_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Four._

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_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: Thanks for the speedy reviews and the encouraging feedback! You guys rock my world! I have written this much since high school, my hands are killing me! (But it's so worth it) _

_At last, the game has finally arrived! I've been dying to write this chapter (though I don't know if that means it'll be long 'cause I can't get enough of it, or short 'cause I wanna get to the best part fast ... I never plan these things out before I write them, I just let my mind wander and my fingers type out whatever I'm thinking. And I rarely edit. Unless there are dozens of horrible typos. In which case I stomp my feet around for a while and curse my stupidity). _

_Any-whooo ... on with the story! _

_P.S. I love watching football, but I don't know all the rules, so if I screw something up, or have something out of place, please don't stone me. I'll simply correct the error. Thanks! _

_I hope you like it, I know I'll have a blast writing it!!_

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

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Rachel had planned on arriving early enough so that she wouldn't be spotted with Owen, but apparently a large portion of the student body arrived early for football games (something about a pre-game show), and Rachel felt extremely unprepared and very out of her element.

She suddenly wished she had grilled Quinn and Britney on the happenings of a football game, what the protocol was, where she should go. Also, she wasn't sure how she was going to ditch Owen without making it obvious that she was ditching him.

Because, honestly? Why would she invite her boyfriend to her school's football game when she's never shown any interest in football? Ever.

It would be all-too obvious to anyone seeing them together that he didn't belong there, and it wouldn't be hard to figure out why.

So, she went with him to the visitor's locker room so he could drop off his stuff, and told him she had to go find her friends.

She hoped that he wouldn't be upset with her for cheering for McKinley. Realistically, she had more people to root for on the home team. Kurt, Finn, Matt, Mike ... Puck. She understood that in some situations, boyfriend took presedence over friend, but there were more of them than him, and she'd probably get food thrown at her for cheering for anyone on the other team while sitting in the "home team" section.

She spotted Quinn walking into the bathroom used mainly by the Cheerios, and she quickly followed her, wanting to discuss what was expected of her.

"Quinn?" she broached, walking into the room.

"Finally, you're here!" the blonde exclaimed. "I was almost going to have to find Kurt to get your cell number."

Rachel was confused. "Why would you need to find me?"

Quinn looked at Britney with an air of conspiracy. "Don't freak out."

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"I can't do this," Rachel proclaimed for fifth time.

"Suck it up," Santana told her. "You're lucky to be here."

Britney placed a tentative but reassuring hand on her shoulder. "You'll do great. It's gonna be fun, really."

Rachel shook her head. "I'm not a ... I can't ..."

Quinn grabbed her shoulders. "Come on, Berry, pull it together! You've told us a million times how you've been performing since you were a baby! Now's the time to show it!" She added in a whisper, "You have no idea how many favors I had to call in to get you here, so don't blow it."

"Why am I even here? This was so _not_ on the agenda! I said I would come. I also remember explicitly stating that I would not cheer!" Rachel reminded her.

Quinn brushed off the comment. "Calm down, or you'll throw up."

Rachel realized the truth behind that, and immediately focused on her breath.

"Come on, it's just one little routine. It'll be over before you know it," Britney comforted her.

_This is insane,_ Rachel told herself, smoothing down the Cheerios outfit they'd forced her into.

The commentator announced them over the loud speaker, and the girls jogged out onto the field to the applause of the surprisingly loud crowd.

Rachel was used to the spotlight, she was used to wearing stage outfits ... she was also used to constant ridicule and battery. But this was ... different. She could tell that the people in the crowd who recognized her were suprised to see her, but they didn't boo like she'd expected. They simply kept applauding, awaiting the pre-game show.

They'd shown Rachel the steps while getting her ready, and done a run-through to be sure. Rachel was a fast learner, especially in the performance arts department. She knew the routine. She knew that she could physically perform the routine with the other girls.

But emotionally? She was freaking out.

Remembering Quinn's earlier words, she took a calming breath, plastering a smile on her face and shaking her pom-poms in the air.

The football players made their way onto the field to mixed reactions of cheering and booing. There seemed to be almost as many Oakland High fans in attendance as there were McKinley High fans, and Rachel suddenly wondered if their rivalry ever turned into a riot. Surely, she would have heard about that, though.

Many of the McKinley guys did a double-take when they saw Rachel Berry in a Cheerios outfit, and Kurt moved over to her, bouncing with excitement.

"You look fabulous!" he informed her, taking in the make-up, glitter, and of course the new outfit.

Rachel blushed, feeling self-conscious enough as it was. The other glee member/football players made their way over, commenting on her new look.

She noticed Puck's eyes linger on her a moment longer than the rest before Tanaka called them back to the bench to run-through the first play once more.

Quinn gave the cue for the pre-game show to start, and they made their way to the center of the field.

Rachel spied Owen as she made her way to the middle of the field, and looked away immediately, feeling herself flush at the awkward situation she'd found herself in.

The music started up, some peppy, chick song, but Rachel was a perfectionist and flawlessly played her part.

She was mildly concerned when it came her turn to be flipped in the air; a part of her was sure that they would drop her on purpose. But the Cheerios apparently cared about their performance as much as she did, for they took none of the opportunities presented to humiliate her in front of not only their school, but Oakland High as well.

It wasn't as fulfilling as glee, but it was fun. The steps were easy but intricately choreographed, she noticed. She landed every toss, stuck every landing, and completed every flip and cartwheel, ignoring the catcalls when her skirt inevitably flared up with all the movement.

When it neared the end of the performance, they were to list off the members of the team and bring the crowd to applause. She'd expected to be left out of this part, but Quinn had informed her that she would be the one to introduce "Number 20, Puckerman!"

When she announced him, the crowd cheered madly for their favorite Left Tackle, and Rachel felt herself beaming as well.

All-too-soon, the performance was over, and the crowd was sufficiently revved up. Mercedes and Tina waved and smiled at her from their spot on the bleachers, and Rachel waved back, high on the buzz of performing.

It felt weird to be waving pom-poms and cheering alongside the people who usually made her life a living hell, but she made a pact with herself to enjoy the night.

The game began, and as Rachel anticipated, the majority of the players were more interested in tackling and shoving each other around, so very little progress was made.

She could see Owen making himself open for several passes, and she fought the urge to say, "Hey, you! He's open!"

Of course, every time on of "her guys" had the ball, she was cheering alongside Quinn and Britney for them to run, or simply yelling "go-go-go!"

She could see Mr Shuester and Miss Pillsbury in the bleachers, and waved before turning her attention back to the game.

In the short amount of time that she'd had her back turned, their team had scored a touchdown. She jumped up and down with the other girls, excited that they'd scored the first goal ... touchdown. _Remember your terms, Rachel. _

The crowd hushed as Kurt made his way onto the field.

After the first game, Coach Tanaka had agreed to let them play music for Kurt whenever he had to kick the ball, knowing it helped him get into the groove. Kurt cued up the boys in charge of the music, and the speakers blared out the chorus of "Honest Mistake", by The Bravery.

The Oakland fans and players were surprised by this, and even more surprised when Kurt danced up to the ball, then kicked it to score a perfectly aligned field-goal.

Rachel whooped and yippeed like nobody's business, excited that her friend had scored. She saw Puck shaking his head at the smaller boy, but with his helmet off, she saw the smirk he wore as well.

Quinn watched Rachel watching Puck, smiling to Britney.

McKinley was 7 points up, Oakland not even on the board, and it was the end of the first quarter.

Rachel got really into the cheering, going along when the Cheerios started chanting, "We're number one! Not two, not three, not four!" and then hopping in a circle with a real smile on her face.

They players made their way back onto the field, and the game recommenced.

Oakland was trying hard to regain the ground they'd lost, pushing McKinley harder than before.

Owen managed to get past the blockers, and charged for the endzone, looking behind him for the pass. Rachel wondered if the other team's quarterback could make that pass, but he did, and Owen caught it. She felt a small tingle of joy when he scored, but nothing compared to cheering for her own team.

She drifted her eyes to where the field was being set up for an attempt at a field-goal, and so didn't notice right away that the crowd had hushed, or that Quinn, Britney and Sanatana all looked panicked.

She turned when Quinn started tugging on her arm, but barely registered the fact that Owen had his helmet off before his lips crashed down on hers.

It was a second before she pulled away, and the crowd was roaring with anger. The Cheerios looked at her with mixed expressions of panic and anger, and Owen just smiled at her cockily. As though he'd meant to do that the entire time.

So, she did the only thing she could think of, and slapped him across the face.

It had the desired effect with the crowd behind her, as they cheered for her apparent rejection of his actions, and he looked at her with an unreadable expression on his face before returning to his side.

Britney reassured her that it was a smart move, and that he'd had no right to do that in front of the entire school, but Rachel could see the damage was done.

Not just with Owen, she noticed. Finn, Mike, Matt and Puck had all recognized him when he'd taken his helmet off. All four of them had surprised and almost betrayed expressions on their faces, but Puck ... he looked as though he were seething mad. Rachel gulped, not knowing what to make of his actions.

The kicker took his shot and missed, and McKinley high was still up by one. But at the moment, Rachel couldn't find the motivation to cheer at that. Not with Noah Puckerman looking at her like that.

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_End of chapter four! (so, this is just part one of the game scene. there will be more coming!) _

_I hope you liked it. Will try to update as soon as possible! _

_Reviews are always appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


	5. Chapter 5

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Five._

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: It's probably getting redundant at this point, but you guys are amazing! I love waking up to see all those awesome reviews! Makes me jump with joy! _

_Alright, he's part two of the "game" scene. _

_I hope you like it, I know I'll love it! I had multiple dreams of all the things I'd put in this chapter, now I just have to choose ... maybe I'll put them all in! _

_Also, does anyone know if Puck is on the offensive or defensive line? 'Cause I know in the first game, he caught the ball Finn threw, and quarter back is on the offensive side, right? But left tackle, to me, says defensive. (well, both really) I dunno. I'm writing this chapter with him on defensive, 'cause I want him to be opposite Owen ... hehe. _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

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The play commenced, and Rachel managed to keep a fake, half-smile on her face, but she couldn't stop thinking about how Quinn and Britney had been right. Apparently, it was a big deal. The look on Puck's face ... dangerous didn't even begin to describe it. Scary, intense ... the look did weird things to her that she couldn't begin to explain.

She clapped her pom-poms together as the guys made their way back onto the field, avoiding the eyes of the guys who'd recognized the wide receiver.

When the second quarter almost over, the girls were going over with Rachel some of the cheers they did at half-time, but they were interrupted as the Oakland fans erupted and hollered with fury, and the ref blew his whistle.

There were mixed shouts of "Interference!" and "Foul!", where the McKinley fans were cheering obscenely.

Rachel looked onto the field to see Finn pulling Puck back to the bench, and the Oakland players on the field crowding around.

The time had run out on the clock, so the first half was over, but many players were still on the field.

Rachel had figured out that someone had been hurt, and her eyes scanned the field looking for Owen. She was still mad at him, but that didn't mean she wanted him to get hurt.

She couldn't see him anywhere, even though she knew he'd been on the field. That only left one option.

"Oh, no," Rachel whispered, taking a step forward as a stretcher was brought onto the field.

Britney held her back.

"What?" Rachel sniped, wanting to check on him.

"Don't make a scene," she told her. "They're going to take him off the field. You can meet him over there," she pointed, showing her a spot that was cleared away for that specific reason.

Rachel thanked her, making her way there while the rest of the cheerios caught the attention of the crowd, keeping them riled up.

Rachel pushed everything else to the back of her mind, including why Puck would do something like that, and waited for Owen to be brought over.

"Is he okay?" he asked the players who'd helped him over.

"Why do you care, _Cheerio_?" they sneered, setting him down.

"It's fine, guys," he told them, trying to sit up.

Rachel knelt beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay? What happened?"

He met her eyes. "I could ask you the same thing."

Rachel sighed. "Okay, I'm sorry I slapped you, but you promised you wouldn't do anything to make me uncomfortable in front of my friends. Laying one on me in front of most of my school kind of constitutes uncomfortable."

Owen replied, "I wasn't talking about that."

"Oh." Rachel looked at him in confusion. "Then what are you talking about?"

"I'm trying to figure out why "Puckerman" would feel the need to pummel me into the ground as hard as he did, if you're just friends with him," Owen told her.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous," Rachel told him. "I'm ... I'm sure it was an accident."

The other players snorted at that, and she glared back at them.

"Puck may be a lot of things, but the one place he shows a modicum of control is on the football field."

Owen eyed her. "Well, then it must be something pretty serious for him to lose control."

Rachel considered that, but kept a neutral face. "Are you okay?" she repeated.

"I'll be fine," he assured her. "They're gonna take me to see if I can still play the second half."

Rachel nodded, looking around before placing a quick kiss on his forehead. Owen looked visibly annoyed, but his face softened at the feel of her lips on any part of his person. His teammates carried him away, and Rachel returned to the other girls.

"Is he okay?" Britney asked her.

Rachel nodded. "He says he'll be fine. I just can't believe Puck did something like that. What would make him snap like that?"

Quinn and Britney smiled to themselves, and Quinn spoke up, "Really? You don't see it?"

"See what?"

Santana shook her head in annoyance, informing them that the crowd was dying down, and they should start a new cheer.

.....................................................................................................................................................................................

Rachel sat out when the others did the half-time show, as they hadn't had time to show her the cheer, so she took the time to walk around and clear her head.

Somehow, she'd ended up outside the McKinley High boy's locker room.

She could hear Tanaka lecturing the boys from inside, and chanced a few steps into the room. Most of the guys had their upper-body gear off, and some had their shirts off. Rachel cast her eyes down, feeling a flush rise to her cheeks.

_Focus!_

She could tell that Puck wasn't paying atention to Tanaka at all, seemed more interested in clenching and unclenching his fists. She couldn't remember actually seeing him mad about anything. Annoyed. Cocky. Superior. Evil. But mad? That was a new one.

She backed out of the locker room, forcing her eyes away from his bare chest and arms, deciding to wait until they came out of the locker room to confront him.

She fumbled with the material of her skirt, remarking how silly she looked. Not that short skirts were something new to her ... most of hers were shorter than this, but it worked for her. This just felt more ... flouncy.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't notice the person walk out into the hall.

"What are you doing here?" he asked her gruffly.

Rachel snapped her head up to meet Puck's eyes.

"Oh, um ... I wanted to talk to you," she told him.

Puck's eyes hardened, and he began to walk down the hall. "Yeah, well ... sorry about flooring your boyfriend."

Rachel fell into step with him. "While I understand that a certain amount of roughness is involved in the sport, I have to wonder if you meant to actually cause him harm."

"It was a legal hit," he told her. "He caught the ball before I hit him."

Rachel nodded, wondering why they were walking so fast. "I'm not disputing that, it's just ... you seem kind of upset."

"I get that way when crazy people are following me!" he retorted, turning on her.

She noted that he may not be as tall as Finn or Owen, but at the moment, he towered over her. She forced herself to look at his eyes, and not the tanned skin that was inches away from her.

"I was just trying to ascertain your motives," she assured him.

"Speak human!" he growled, stepping even closer.

Rachel found herself annoyed at this, and stepped into him, showing him he didn't frighten her. "I am! Perhaps you should get a dictionary!"

He gritted his teeth at that, seething out of every pore of his body.

"You are such a prissy, spoiled brat!" he informed her, leaning with his whole body to tell her that.

"And you're a cruel, arrogant ass!" she replied, hands on her hips.

Her body was flushed with heat, and she felt mad enough to strike him.

He further invaded her personal space, and it wasn't until he had backed her against the nearest wall that her expression changed from anger to confusion, to apprehension. Her temperature started to rise, and she felt a flush beginning to creep up her neck.

He smirked at the fact that he could stir such reactions in her, and didn't have any qualms about placing his hands on either side of her, boxing her in.

"You were saying?" he wondered, quieter than she had expected.

Rachel tried to regulate her breathing, but her heartrate had increased exponentially, and she found herself letting out a small gasp.

His eyes traveled over her face, to the part of her lips where the air had been drawn in sharply, and dipped slightly lower, past her neck and collarbone -

"I'm sorry, I hope I'm not interrupting anything," a voice down the hall asked, and Rachel and Puck both turned to see Owen standing with a couple of his teammates beside him.

She brought her hands up to push Puck away from her, but he had a very firm stance, and simply leaned back, dropping his hands away and crossing them over his chest to glare at Owen.

Rachel looked between the two with concern, wondering how far they'd wandered from the McKinley boys' locker room.

"Owen, you're feeling better," Rachel commented, hoping to quell any ideas of a fight breaking out. She honestly didn't know what to do if that situation arose. "Call for help? Try to pull them off of each other? Use her superior vocal chords until they all backed away with their hands over their ears?

"Oh, much," he told her, glaring at Puck. "I see you weren't being completely honest earlier."

"What?"

He motioned to Puck.

Rachel realized what he must have thought when he saw them and shook her head, trying to settle the feeling in her gut. "No, that was just ... a misunderstanding."

"Right," Owen stated sarcastically. "You might wanna go back on the field with you friends, Sweetie," he told her, motioning to the guys behind him. "This might get upsetting."

Puck stepped forward, not intimidated in the least.

Rachel stepped between the two, placing a hand on Puck's chest and ignoring the heat it created. "Oh, no you don't."

"Back off, Berry," Puck gritted out, itching for a fight. So what if it got him thrown out of the game?

Rachel persisted, placing both hands on his chest while looking over her shoulder. "Owen, go back to your locker room. You're acting like children." She pushed with all her might on Puck's chest, intent on walking him all the way back to his locker room.

The guys beside Owen made obscene comments about him letting a girl push him around, but Puck just smirked and put his hand dangerously low on Rachel's back while he allowed her to Push him backwards, smirking at Owen's affronted look.

Rachel didn't think to remove his hand, too focused on getting him out of the hallway.

When they turned a corner, Puck stopped short, causing her to fall into him.

"Oof!" was about the noise she made, and Puck almost chuckled.

"You can stop manhandling me now," he told her, removing his hand from her waist. He told himself he'd only done that to piss off the wide receiver.

Rachel straightened herself up, looking up at him. "Right. Um ... sorry about that."

He shrugged, making his way back to the dressing room.

Rachel called after him, "You're not going to start anything with him on the field, are you?"

He replied over his shoulder, "No promises, Berry."

Rachel sighed, turning to get back to the field, shaking her head at the idiocy of some people, and trying to figure out why her heart was fluttering in her chest.

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_End of chapter five!_

_Yep, the game sequence still isn't over! it's only half-time! _

_I really hope you guys liked that one. I wanted to go a little further on the scene between Rachel and Puck in the hallway, but it felt too quick for that, so I had it get interrupted. Plus, I really wanted a "showdown" of sorts between Puck and Owen. Don't worry, there will be more of that to come! _

_Reviews are always appreciated, positive or negative! _

_Until next time ...! _


	6. Chapter 6

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter six. _

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: You guys made my whole day. I was in such a bad mood right before my classes started (which is no way to go to class), but then I checked my email on my break, and saw all the wonderful reviews, and you made me smile again! Hugs and Kisses to all! _

_I hope you like this next chapter, I know I had fun writing it. (It kept me busy when I was supposed to be paying attention in class) _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

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Rachel shook away the feeling in her belly as she made her way back to the field. What a situation she'd foudn herself in. She shuddered to think about what would happen if the other three started going after him as well.

She was happy that Owen was alright, but his behavior was unacceptable. He was a football player - by choice - he should be used to getting hit.

She straightened her face when she reapproached the Cheerios. "So, are you done with me now?"

"Oh, come on, aren't you having fun?" Quinn responded.

"Oh, yeah. The guy who thew slushies at me for fun just tried to beat up my boyfriend! This is super fun!"

The other girls crowded around her, excited to gossip.

"What happened?"

"What did he do?"

"Was it hot?"

"Did he make him bleed?"

Rachel looked at them as thought they were from another planet. "This isn't a good thing. I have to deal with both of these guys on differering personal levels. Owen is my boyfriend, and I'm paired up with Puck in glee right now! I can't deal with their drama on top of that!"

Britney and Quinn smiled at her minor freakout, but she had no time to ask them what was so funny as the buzzer rang out, signaling that it was time for the players to return to the field, and Quinn ushered her along with the other girls to form two lines at the player's entrance.

Rachel followed the other girls' lead and held up her pom-poms, shaking them with her wrists crossed and lifting her arms in the air.

The boys came out, running between the two line that the Cheerios had made.

Puck cut his gaze to her, his deep stare boring into her as he passed, and it could have been minutes that went by, not just the second or two it really was, but Rachel wouldn't have been able to tell the difference.

Rachel didn't know what the feeling was, but it was distracting her, and she wished it would go away so that she could focus on the game.

After the last of the players and Tanaka had gone through and taken the field, the girls moved back to the sidelines, urging to crowd to applaud more.

Rachel sighed, preparing for the second half.

.....................................................................................................................................................................................

The violence had increased drastically in the 3rd quarter. The hits were harder, and seemed to have less to do with any of the plays, and were appearing to be increasingly dirty.

As such, by the end of the 3rd quarter, the score had not changed, and both coaches were visibly annoyed at their players. Tanaka, much less than the other coach, because his guys were ahead by one.

The refs tried talking to both teams, to remind them to play a clean game in their last quarter, but it was obvious to everyone that the boys didn't care one bit about the refs' opinions.

Rachel thought momentarily that it would be so pefectly fitting for it to start raining at this point.

A look up at the sky, however, showed that while the sky was dark, there wasn't a cloud in sight.

She glanced across the field, and even though realistically she couldn't see past his helmet to know if he was looking at her, she could feel his eyes on her, and wondered if she should feel worse about Puck tackling him with a little excess force.

_I mean, he's walking around, he was more than willing to get into a fight with him. Clearly he's not hurt too badly._

She brushed off the feeling, forcing herself to focus on the cheer. M-C-KIN-LEY-Go! McKinley!

The fans on the opposing bleachers attempted to out-shout them, but they had superior numbers, and in Rachel's opinion, were all-around better (uh-oh, she was already thinking like a Cheerio), and they easily overpowered their volume.

The play continued, and it appeared that Finn had managed to talk some sense into the guys, for they acually started playing like a team, instead of an assualt force.

Mike managed to get open 30 yards away from the endzone, and Finn threw a perfect spiral to him before he was knocked down. Mike plucked the ball out of the air, running for a touchdown.

He was taken down 20 yards away from the endzone, but everyone cheered at the amount of ground covered on the first down.

Rachel clapped her pom-poms wildly when they gained another 10 yards on the next down. On the third down, the ball was intercepted, and it looked like the other team had a clear run, but Puck managed to tackle the player down, losing only 5 yards.

Rachel found herself really getting into it, knowing from the people around her - and her limited knowledge of football - that this was an intense moment.

Kurt came in for Matt, shocking the crowd, but Rachel felt herself bouncing with excitement.

The Oakland High players laughed when the saw the little guy rush onto the field, paying him no mind, convinced it was a distraction-tactic.

They ate their surprise when Finn reverse-passed to him, and everyone blocked the way for him to run the remaining 15 yards to score a touchdown.

Rachel jumped up and down, cheering madly for Kurt's shining moment - the second of the night - and found Britney bouncing along beside her.

Quinn called for a victory pyramid, and Rachel felt a moment of panic, realising they'd only run through that routine once. She hoped to be excluded from the cheer, but Quinn motioned for her to be hoisted up the oppposite side, and much-too-soon for her liking, she was double as high in the air as she would normally like to be. She did as she'd practiced, holding her balance and steadying the girl above her - which was easier than it looked - and even managed to put a smile on her face without looking as terrified as she felt. The students and some teachers from McKinley High cheered on, even after the girls climbed down from the pyramid.

Rachel felt her heart leap into her throat as she jumped down, but felt reassured as her feet were back on solid ground, and she'd survived the experienced unscathed and slushie-free.

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Rachel hung back with Mercedes and Tina, high off of the excitement of the night. McKinley had beaten Oakland 20-13. Rachel told Quinn she'd wash the outfit before bringing it back to her the next day, and turned down her offer to personally congratulate the boys on their victory.

She thought it was best to give them some space, and she wanted to talk to Owen after the game.

She said goodbye to Mercedes and Tina before making her way to the visitor's locker room to meet Owen.

He was making his way out of the locker room when she got there.

"Hey, are you forgetting someone?" she joked, sliding along beside him.

Owen barely acknowledged her. "Isn't there someone else you should be congratulating?"

"Oh, come on, it was just a game," she brushed off.

"That's not the only thing I have to be upset about," he informed her, walking out of the school quickly.

Rachel scoffed at him, stepping in front of him. "What is your problem?"

"My problem is that you seem to have no problem with a guy using excessive force on me during the game, or letting that same guy undress you with his eyes!" he informed her, trying to walk around her.

Rachel snorted at that. "You're delusional."

"Really?"

She nodded her head. "Noah Puckerman can't stand me. What you saw in the hallway was just his way of screwing with my mind."

Owen shook his head. "I find that hard to believe."

Rachel shrugged her shoulders. "That's because you don't go to McKinley. I'm not exactly everyone's favorite person. ... Look, I really am sorry about before. I didn't mean to slap you. It was just ... a reflex."

He rolled his eyes. "I'm not made of glass."

"Apparently," she commented.

Owen spotted Puck standing in the field over Rachel's shoulder, and got an evil glint in his eye. He didn't believe for a second that the left tackle's only interest in her was to torment her.

"Can we agree to forgive each other?" he asked her sweetly.

Rachel nodded. "Sounds good. We can just put this whole night behind us ... except for the part where my school kicked your school's butt."

Owen rolled his eyes, but stepped closer, lowering his head until she closed her eyes. He extended his left hand behind her head, giving Puck a clear view of his middle digit before kissing Rachel fully.

Across the field, Puck fumed at his opponent's arrogance.

"Oh, it's on," he voiced, before returning to the locker room to do some wicked planning. The only kind worth doing.

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_End of chapter six. _

_I have a fun idea for one of Puck's pranks in the next chapter. Hint: it won't smell pretty. _

_I hope you liked this chapter ... it feels kind of flat compared to the others, but maybe that's just 'cause I'm looking forward to the next one. _

_Anywhoo ... reviews are appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


	7. Chapter 7

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Seven_

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1 (Also, "Something to Talk About", by Bonnie Raitt, is not mine) _

_..._

_A/N: Oh my god. You guys are phenomenal. 91 reviews. 91! Amazing! Thank you everyone who has put this story on their favorite/alert list, and a special thank you to everyone reading this story that put me on their author alert/favorite author list. You certainly know how to stroke me ego, you guys! _

_Okay, so as far far as Puck's pranks go, they're gonna start *kinda* small, and then escalate, but I absolutely love the one I have planned for this chapter (unless I do more than one, I haven't decided). _

_I'm so happy you're still enjoying this story, and that I've been able to get the chapters out so quick for you. You guys rock! _

_So, with very little further ado, here's chapter seven! _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

* * *

Rachel had agreed to meet Puck after glee to rehearse the song Mr Shuester had given them at practice. She grudgingly admitted that she and Noah Puckerman sounded good together, even if he didn't have as high of a range as she did. This was once instance where Mr Shuester's wacky ideas played out well.

Luckily, the guys on the football team weren't too upset with her for dating a rival, but given what Quinn and the other Cheerios had told her, she found this to be weird. She was expecting a much harsher reaction out of them, but they seemed ... fine. She ignored the warning bells that went off in her head, telling herself that she was only freaking herself out, because she wasn't used to having a boyfriend, or as many new friends as she did now.

She'd also expected to get many slushies to the fact that day, after what Owen had done at the game, but apparently everyone in the school loved that she'd slapped him, and some people even walking by her in the hall and smiled. Not a slushie to be seen. Again, she forced down the warning bells. It felt like the calm before the storm, but she told herself to enjoy it while it lasted.

When she met Puck in the auditorium after school, she informed him that she only had fourty-five minutes to practice, as Owen would be picking her up after his football practice.

Puck grunted to let her know he'd heard her, and got the music up and running.

Rachel ran through the choreography step-by-step, only sounding a little condescending, and after the first ten minutes had passes, Puck was ready to ring her neck ... or find some other way to shut her up.

"Let's just try running through it," he suggested.

She nodded, handing him the paper that his his parts of the song highlighted. She turned on the instrumental version of the song that the band would be tweaking, and got into her position.

"People are talking,

Talking 'bout people.

I hear them whisper,

You won't believe it!

They think we're lovers,

Kept undercover.

I just ignore it,

But they keep saying:

We laugh just a little too loud.

We stand just a little too close.

We stare just a little too long.

Maybe they're seeing,

Something we don't, Darlin'!"

He joined her, movements, having stood still before while she sang to him and moved around him.

"**Let's give them something to talk about. **

**Let's give them something to talk about. **

**Let's give them something to talk about! **

**How about love?" **

Now it was Puck's turn to sing to Rachel, and he skimmed over his part once before continuing.

"_I feel so foolish. _

_I've never noticed. _

_You act so nervous, _

_Could you be falling for me? _

_It took a rumor,_

_To make me wonder. _

_Now I'm convinced, _

_That I am going under! _

_Thinking 'bout you every day. _

_Dream 'bout you every night. _

_I'm hoping that you feel the same way. _

_Now that we know it, _

_Let's really show it, Darlin'!" _

They danced around each other, stepping in close as they sang.

"**Let's give them something to talk about. **

**A little mystery to figure out, babe. **

**Let's give them something to talk about, **

**How about love, love, love? **

He spun her away, following her to the side of the stage only for her to push him back with her hands on his chest, before falling into his arms and dropping herself down. He picked her up with ease, drawing her towards him with a finger on her chin. She smirked, trailing her hand across his chest as she moved around him, only for him to turn and pull her back towards him, their chests colliding.

**Let's give them something to talk about!**

**A little mystery to figure out. **

**Let's give them something to talk about! **

**How about ... love?" **

They finished the song, breathing a little heavier than necessary. Rachel noted the closeness of their bodies, and took a step back, shaking off the effects of the song.

"That was good," she told him. "The choreography could use some work, and you should consider working on your pitch, but it was well-harmonized, and believable."

"Believable?" he asked her.

"Um, you know ... well-acted-out?" she offered, sliding back to her chair.

"Right," he stated, confused, but not really wanting to listen to her blabbering on. She was much less annoying when was singing. He sighed, mumbling, "Alright, let's work on the choreography again."

She smiled, standing up and hauling him back to the middle of the stage.

* * *

They'd been working on it for a good fifteen minutes when Rachel's phone rang. She disentangled herself from showing him where on her hips his hands should go to spin her, so that she could answer it, recognising the ringtone.

"Owen?"

She was quiet for a moment, and Puck didn't mind listening in, feeling the corners of his mouth twitch upwards.

"Why? What's wrong with your car?"

She listened intently, her eyebrows perking up in surprise.

Puck forced himself not to grin.

"How did it get in there?" she asked her boyfriend.

He could almost hear Owen's voice raising in volume.

"What do you mean someone must have put it in there? Owen ... who would put a skunk in your car?"

It took every ounce of self-control for Puck not to burst out laughing. He kept his face as neutral as he could when Rachel turned around to look at him.

"No, I don't think ... be realistic, Owen. I'm sure it just found it's way in there, and you didn't notice it until now," she tried, squinting her eyes at Puck, who had suddenly found something very interesting under his nails.

"No, it's okay ... I can find another way home. No, you should really get it taken care of before the smell sets in. No, it's okay, we can do something another night. Okay. Bye."

She hung up the phone with a louder-than-necessary click, placing it back in her bag before turning on Puck.

"Would there be any point at all in me asking if you had something to do with that?" she asked him, stepping forward with her arms crossed.

"With what?" he asked innocently.

"Don't play dumb."

He smirked. "Hey, I'm sure it sucks that your boyfriend has a ... skunk problem. But I've been here all day. I couldn't have possibly done it." He leaned forward, invading her personal space. "Besides. Why would I have any reason to skunk his car?"

Rachel swallowed the built-up saliva in her mouth. She didn't gulp. "Right. Which is why I told him the little critter probably found its own way in there."

Puck's smirk grew. "Exactly. So, now that you have some time on your hands ... shall we continue?"

Rachel shook herself out of whatever daze she was in. "Well, I should probably get on the phone and try to find another way home."

Puck shrugged. "I can drive you."

Rachel eyed him. "Really?"

He groaned. "Don't make a big deal about it, Berry. It's on my way, anyway. Can we get back to work now?"

She nodded, returning to the stereo to press play.

Puck allowed himself one small, quiet chuckle. Not only had he screwed up the douche's car, but he'd also ruined his plans for the evening. Score one for McKinley!

He didn't think about the fact that he'd essentially taken over Owen's date with Rachel. That he would be the one driving her home. That she had defended her belief that Puck wouldn't do that to her boyfriend's car, even though she thought there was a chance he had done it. He didn't think about any of that stuff.

What he did think about was the next prank he was planning, and how best to screw with the cocky wide receiver next.

* * *

"Thanks for the ride," she said, hand on the door handle.

"No sweat," he brushed off, putting the truck in park.

"I think we did really well tonight. Made some really good progress. I think everyone will be impressed when we present it next week," she told him.

He nodded. "Sure."

She looked over at him, cocking her head to the side.

"What?" he asked her.

She shrugged. "You just don't seem very interested in it, even though you asked me to stay late to rehearse it. I'm wondering why."

He shook his head. "Just got some other stuff on my mind. Don't worry, I won't screw it up for you."

"That's not what I thought," she assured him, opening the door to the truck. "I guess I'll see you on Monday."

"Sure," he replied, getting antsy. "Have fun with, you know ... whatever it is that you do here," he gestured to her house.

Rachel laughed softly at that. "I'll try. Um, bye."

He nodded as she stepped out of the truck and closed the door, and even managed to wait until she got into the house to speed away.

He flipped open his phone, dialing a number.

"Hello?" Mike asked.

"Step one was a success," he spoke into the phone.

"Sweet. What's next?"

"Call Matt and meet me at Finn's in 20. We got work to do."

* * *

_End of chapter seven. _

_Hope you liked it. _

_More prank-goodness to come in the next chapter. _

_Reviews are appreciated, (downright loved) positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


	8. Chapter 8

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Eight. _

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: Thanks for the continually great reviews. And just a side-note: don't be shy about pointing out any spelling errors. I'm a nightmare to my friends when it comes to spelling errors, and I prefer to type on WordPad, instead of Microsoft Word, so it doesn't automatically tell me I've spelled something wrong. I usually catch myself and fix it, but when I get so into a story, my fingers just start flying, and I don't notice as many as I should. Sigh. So, I've fixed the two that were pointed out in the last chapter, and if you see any more, just say, "Hey, crazy lady, you spelled that wrong!" _

_Okie dokie, in regards to the skunk prank: I used to live in a town very populated with skunks, and tomato soup baths were a common occurance. So, it wasn't so much the idea of the skunk for that prank, but more everything that Owen would have to go through to get rid of the skunk essence, not to mention the skunk itself. (I have happy visions of him trying to coax the skunk out, and then getting sprayed himself. Hehe.) _

_Alrighty-roo (slightly hopped up on caffeine) on with the next chapter! _

_I hope you like it, I know I'm loving this story as much as you guys! _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

.....................................................................................................................................................................................

Rachel hadn't seen Owen all weekend. He'd explained to her over the phone that trying to remove the skunk from his car had not been a pleasant experience, and he was in the process of trying many different remedies to get the stench off of him, not to mention cleaning out his car.

He made a point of telling her that there was no way a skunk could have made its way into his car by accident, pressing that somone else must have done it, and since he had no enemies at his school, and no one had yet taken credit for, it must have been someone that he'd "rubbed the wrong way" at the football game.

Rachel sighed, telling him that she'd already confronted Puck about it, and he couldn't have done. None of the others had a reason to, as they were all okay with her dating him. She insisted that he was being paranoid, and that she hoped he would quit accusing her friends of such scandalous acts.

Thus, she hadn't seen him all weekend.

She hoped he wasn't mad at her. She enjoyed going out with him and having him bring her to school, and really liked the fact that she finally had a boyfriend, and so she didn't want to lose him over something so silly as a skunk, or football.

Her dads assured her he would come around, and not to fret too much about it.

"Everything will work itself out in the end," her daddy told her confidently.

So, she spent most of the weekend working on her end of the duet with Puck, the perfectionist in her taking over. She wasn't usually one for country music, but she enjoyed this song, and she already had some ideas for how Artie and the band members could make it more soulful.

When Monday rolled around, she hesitated before putting the extra set of clothes into her backpack. It was such a habit for her that she usually didn't even think about it. But, it had been over a week since she'd been slushied, and there hadn't even been any new scathing or hurtful comments on her MySpace page. Sighing, she put the clothes in the bag, just incase.

She assumed that Owen wouldn't be there to drive her, so she began walking the way when a big, blue truck pulled up in front of her.

"Hop in," Owen called out, leaning over to pop open the door.

Rachel crinkled her nose before stepping into the loud machine, pulling the door shut once she was in.

"It's dad's," he told her, answering her unasked question. "Mine's still ... less than fresh."

"I see," she replied, buckling her seatbelt.

"Look, I'm sorry about before," he told her, driving down the street. "I didn't mean to accuse your friends. I just couldn't think of anyone else who would do it."

Rachel looked over at him. "So you're still convinced someone "did it" to you, on purpose?"

He nodded. "I just can't see how it would have gotten into my car by accident. I didn't see it there in the morning, but when I got to my car after school, I could smell it a few cars away. I haven't pissed off anyone at my school."

"That you know of," Rachel offered.

"Oh, that's comforting," he said, gripping the wheel.

"I'm just saying, before jumping the gun and assuming the worst, maybe you should consider all other options. Maybe someone at Oakland was upset that you guys lost, and took it out on you," she suggested.

"Why just me?" he countered.

"It's just a theory. Just as plausible as yours," she retorted, getting annoyed. "Can we please stop talking about this, now?"

He nodded. "Yeah, that would probably be a good idea."

They drove in silence for a couple blocks before Owen spoke, "So ... how's glee going?"

Rachel softened at the topic. "Great. I'm excited about my newest duet."

"What song is it?"

"It's "Something to Talk About", by Bonnie Raitt, but we're tweaking the instrumental parts to make it newer, and obviously different because it's a duet, and not a solo."

He nodded at her excitement. "So, who are you singing with."

Rachel opened her mouth to answer honestly, but then paused.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing. It's just ... Mr Shuester assigned me to sing with ... Puck for this song."

He snorted at that. "He sings?"

Rachel narrowed her eyes as it. "Yes, he does. He's fairly good at it, if I do say so. And I do."

Owen nodded, biting his tongue.

Rachel tried to move past the "Puck" subject, growing weary of discussing him with Owen. "You know, I've never heard you sing. Maybe you could come over some time and show me all your talents."

He smirked at that. "If I'm coming over to show you my talents, it won't have anything to do with singing."

Rachel flushed at that, slightly uncomfortable.

Owen backstepped, "What I mean is, I'm not much of a singer. My sister's the performer of the family."

"I'm sure with the proper coaching you could excell at anything. That's my philosophy," she told him.

He shrugged. "I think I'll stick with football."

They finally pulled up at the school, and Rachel unbuckled her seatbelt, getting ready to step out of the truck.

He saw a few of the football guys notice them pull up to the front of the school, so he exited the truck as well.

"What are you doing?" she wondered.

"I'll walk you in," he told her, coming around to her side and draping his arm across her shoulder.

Rachel allowed him to walk with her into the school, though she didn't return his embrace. She wasn't exactly in a lovey-dovey mood, and she had a sneaking suspicion he was only doing it to show off in front of her peers.

She frowned apologetically at Mike and Matt when she passed them, making her way into the school and to her locker.

She expected him to leave like he always did at this point, but he leaned his shoulder on the locker next to hers. "So, do you have some time before you start class?"

She looked at him in confusion. "Some, I suppose. I usually use this time to go over my notes for glee and practice in the auditorium."

"Well, do you think you could skip your morning ritual just this once and have breakfast with me?" he asked her.

She furrowed her brow. "I already ate at home. If you wanted to have breakfast with me, you should have called me to let me know ... or taken me somewhere before school."

He sighed. "Well, does your school have a cafeteria? Vending machines?"

Rachel nodded. "So, let's get a ... light snack."

"You're going to be late for school," she informed him, dropping her stuff off at her locker.

He smiled, walking down the hall with her. She had her notes held up in front of her, going over them while they walked down the hall, so he couldn't hold her hand. He'd wanted to make it clear to all those around her that she was his.

Puck spotted Rachel walking with her head down, going over her notes like usual. He'd bought a slushie with the intention of actually drinking it before making his way to locker room to conspire with the others.

However, when he saw that Owen was with her, he glanced down at the cup in his hands.

He popped the lid off carefully, flinging it into a nearby garbage while moving the straw from where it was tucked in his ear, to his back pocket.

He spotted one of the baseball players, and pulled him aside.

"See the guy walking beside Rachel Berry?" he pointed.

Murray nodded.

"Hit him with this. He's from Oakland," he told him.

Murray took the cup eagerly.

"But don't hit Berry. Only the guy," he clarified.

Murray sighed, but nodded, making his way down the hall.

Rachel glanced up while she was reading, and saw the slushie coming her way. She flinched, turning towards the lockers, but barely any of it hit her. A few drops, if anything.

She tentatively turned around to see Owen covered in grape-flavored slushie.

"Oh, my ..."

"What the hell?!" Owen roared, wiping the cold goo off his face.

Murray's flight response kicked in, and he ran down the hall after noticing he had gotten a bit of the slushie on Rachel Berry, the one thing he'd been told not to do.

Owen looked around for the culprit, and Puck chose at that moment to walk by casually.

"You!" Owen spat, grabbing him by the shirt and hauling him against the lockers.

"Owen!" Rachel shouted, trying to pull him off of him.

"First the skunk, now this?" Owen snarled.

Puck played the part. "I don't know what the hell you're talking about, but I suggest you get your hands off me," he warned, shoving him back.

Owen came back for more. "Or what? You'll serenade me to death?"

Puck glanced at Rachel before pulling his arm back, intending to deck the other jock.

"Both of you, stop it!" Rachel demanded, stepping in between them. She figured she'd have a better chance of stopping Owen (she'd seen how effective he was in taking people out in football), so she looked at him. "It wasn't Puck who slushied you, it was some guy from the baseball team. It happens a lot here," she explained. "You really need to stop attacking my friends."

Puck smirked at that, but continued glaring at Owen, pressing himself into the hand Rachel had on his chest.

Rachel tightened her fingers on Puck's chest, inadvertently pressing her fingers into his pecs.

She blinked away her suprise, ignoring the shudder she thought she'd felt run through him.

"Maybe it's just a bad idea for you to come in with me from now on," she suggested to Owen.

"That's just great," Owen stated. "I get attacked with frozen juice, and now you're telling me I can't even spend the mornings with my own girlfriend?"

Puck opened his mouth to speak, but Rachel felt his intake of breath, and turned her head to him, narrowing her eyes and effectively shushing him.

She turned back to Owen. "You really should go clean that up before it stains. I'll see you after school."

He still looked upset, so she placated him by placing a quick kiss on his sticky cheek.

He tried to give her a "real" kiss, but she pulled back, explaining, "I don't like grape."

She felt Puck shift behind her, but ignored him as Owen nodded and left.

She clenched the papers in her hand, turning to look back at Puck.

"Sorry about that," she offered, slowly removing her hand from his chest.

He shrugged. "Whatever. Except I know for a fact that grape is your favorite."

Rachel shifted nervously. "How would you know that."

He smirked. "'Cause the last time I threw a grape one in your face, you licked your lips before you cleaned yourself off."

Rachel was surprised that he had both noticed, and remembered that.

She was interrupted from replying when Kurt came bounding up to her. "Was that Owen I saw with slushie all over him?"

Rachel nodded.

Kurt glanced at Puck.

"It wasn't me," he said honestly.

"I wouldn't be surprised if it was," Kurt continued. "He totally faked that injury on the field, trying to draw a penalty on you."

Rachel looked between them. "Is that true?"

Puck shrugged. "I got places to be." He turned, headed for the locker room, and Rachel noticed a straw sticking out of his back pocket.

.....................................................................................................................................................................................

Quinn glanced over at Rachel during Spanish, seeing that looked noticeably upset. Usually she wouldn't care, but Rachel had been nothing but nice to her, and part of her plan included talking to the girl, so she figured she should give it an effort.

"Hey, what's up?" she whispered.

Rachel looked at the blonde beside, sighing. "Stupid boys."

Quinn held back a smirk. She was good at these kinds of talks.

"Which ones?"

Rachel answered, "Owen and Puck. Owen is convinced that Puck is pulling all these pranks on him, and keeps trying to attack him for it. I believed Puck when he told me he had nothing to do with the first one, but this morning Owen got slushied by someone from the baseball team, and Puck had a straw in his back pocket, but not slushie." She paused, unsure if she'd ever said that many words to the cheerleader.

Quinn barely contained a giggle. "Sounds like someone's jealous."

Rachel nodded. "But Owen has nothing to be jealous about. I mean, Puck has never tried to do anything with me that would constitute jealousy from another male."

Quinn rolled her eyes. "I wasn't talking about Owen."

Rachel leaned her head back, squinting her eyes in confusion. "Then who are you talking about?"

"Puck!" she whispered. "It sounds like he's totally jealous of Owen."

Rachel shook her head. "I seriously doubt that. Why would he have any reason to be jealous of him? He doesn't like me."

Quinn shrugged. "Have you ever asked him?"

Rachel shook her head. "It's sort of an unspoken agreement."

"Well, then you don't know for sure. I, personally, think you and Puck would make a great couple."

"But I have a boyfriend," she stated.

Quinn blinked at Rachel's density. "Well, if Owen can't accept your friends, then he's not being a very good boyfrend. We're performing our duets tomorrow for glee, why don't you invite him?"

"But ... I'm performing with Puck. Wouldn't that be kind of like ... salt on a wound?" Rachel wondered.

Quinn forced the smile off her face. "But if there's nothing between you two, as you say, Owen will see that, and everything will be fine."

Rachel considered it. "Maybe."

"Trust me," Quinn stated. "I know what I'm talking about."

.....................................................................................................................................................................................

Puck handed out assignments to each of the football players, having recruited some of the others on the team as well.

He had some of them assigned to other players on the Oakland team, to throw suspicion off of him. The smaller tasks were things like egging his house, torching pornographic images into the Oakland High football field, deflating the air in his tires (but not slashing them).

It still wasn't enough, he thought. These were all too ... childish. Simplistic. He needed something more.

"I want in," Kurt said from behind him.

Puck turned around, cursing himself for not watching the door.

"What are you talking about, Hummel?" he wondered innocently.

Kurt stepped forward. "I am as unimpressed with Rachel's new suitor as you are. Nor do I have much care for the members of the Oakland High football team. They laughed at my size as well as my dancing." He jutted his chin out. "This means war."

Puck pursed his lips before smirking. "Alright, you're in. We could use some fresh ideas."

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_End of chapter eight. _

_Hope you liked it. _

_Reviews are appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


	9. Chapter 9

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Nine._

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: Okay, you guys make my day. I've never had a story receive such positive feedback, and I've never updated a story this fast. You rock! _

_Mini-warning: swear word at the end of this chapter. (Oh, the horror!) _

_So, with very little more out of me, let's get on with the next chapter! _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback!_

* * *

Rachel caught up with Puck after his football practice. As he passed the bleachers, she called out, "Puck?"

He turned at the the sound of her voice. "Berry?"

She fought the urge to roll her eyes, but figured if she didn't call him by his first name, he had no reason to call her by her first name either.

"I need to talk to you about something."

For a moment, Puck panicked, thinking he'd been busted. He hid it as well as he could.

"What about?" he asked, climbing up the bleachers.

"It's about our duet tomorrow," she told him, turning to face him.

"Oh," he said, feeling relieved. "What about it?"

"Well, I was talking to Quinn, and -"

"That's never a good way to start a sentence," he joked.

She rolled her eyes, but chuckled along with him. "Anyway, she had this idea." She took a breath. "She wants me to invite Owen to see our performance tomorrow."

Puck stared at her for a second.

"Puck?"

"Are you asking my permission to invite your boyfriend to watch us sing and dance together?" he asked her after a moment.

She shook her head, but then stopped. "Well, kind of. I just ... I know you two didn't exactly get off on the right foot, and if you have a problem with him being there, I would completely forget the idea. It's just that ... well, Quinn has this crazy idea, and well ... it's just stupid. But she thinks that him coming will help him to see that there's nothing ... that you don't ... that we ..."

She fumbled for the right words, all the while growing redder and hotter.

"Spit it out, Berry," he said finally.

"Do you have a problem with him being there?" she said finally.

He shook his head, and idea forming. "Not at all. The more the merrier."

Rachel nodded, relieved. "Okay then."

"Can I leave now, or are you gonna babble some more?" Puck wondered.

Rachel smirked. "You can leave."

* * *

Puck found it interesting that Rachel hadn't considered the fact that they were basically singing a love song, and her boyfriend already had certain ideas about him.

He pushed the thought out of his head, reminding himself that the only reason he was tormenting the guy was because he was from Oakland, and he hated cocky football players from Oakland.

He pulled Kurt aside before the smaller player left the locker room, discussing his thoughts with him. Kurt assured him he would't let him down.

Puck found Rachel before she left, suggesting that he come over that night to practice their routine. She agreed that it was a good idea, and told him when to come over before she left to meet Owen.

He wondered what Owen would think of coming to see their performance. If he would even agree to it. Personally, he was banking on it. It would definitely increase his chances of pissing the wide receiver off for him to see his girlfriend dancing a love song with the guy who knocked him out on the field.

Kurt ran up to him.

"I have a genius idea, but there's one minor flaw," he told him.

"Which is?"

"I need the keys to his house."

Puck blinked. "What?"

"I need the keys to his house," he repeated.

"I heard you the first time. How the hell am I supposed to get the keys to his house?" Puck asked him. "And why am I loving the sound of this?"

Kurt smiled. "Listen and learn, my fair-haired friend."

* * *

It was a risky job, but Mike and Matt volunteered. They got the football schedule off the internet, but they would have to wait until Wednesday to put their plan into action. It was good, so Puck was willing to be patient. In the meantime, he gave the guys the go-ahead for their other tasks.

Puck smirked at the thought that it could turn into an open-season on all Oaklanders.

He completed his routine at home, helped his mother with supper and took the garbage out before he left to go to Rachel's for their practice session.

He knocked on the door, only a few minutes late. He didn't do the whole, "on time" thing.

One of her dads answered. "Hello, you must be Noah."

"Um, yeah ... except everyone calls me Puck."

The older man shook his head. "I won't. Come in, Rachel's waiting for you upstairs. Go on up, you can't miss it."

He thought it was odd that the man trusted his daughter that much that he didn't mind guys he'd never met going into her room, but he shrugged it off, making his way up the stairs.

Rachel was on the phone when he got there. "You definitely need to spray it off right away. Yes. Because it will be a nightmare to remove in the morning if you don't. No, of course I don't think they did it. Yes, I'm sure. Quit worrying. You promised you would come tomorrow, are you still going to? Oh, good. Thank you."

She turned when she noticed Puck closing the door behind him.

"Okay, I have to go now. Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow. Bye."

Puck stood awkwardly in the doorway.

"So, apparently someone egged Owen's house," she stated.

Puck shrugged nonchalantly. "That sucks."

"Yeah, it does." She paused for a moment, sizing him up. "And normally I would think that certain individuals might have had something to do with it, but apparently a bunch of houses on his street got hit. So it was probably just a random thing. Not that that makes it any better."

"Sure," Puck said. "Whatever. Can we get started?"

Rachel nodded. "Of course."

She turned to prepare the music, and Puck smirked while her back was turned. A thought struck him. "Wait, we're doing it in here?"

"Of course," Rachel answered without turning around.

"Won't your dads mind?" he wondered.

She shook her head. "My room is sound-proofed. When my dads realized my musical talents, they had my room redesigned so that I could perform whenever I wanted to without it bothering or interrupting them. They won't hear a thing as long as the door is closed."

He was sure he could feel his pupils dilate when she said that. He cleared his throat, stripping off his jacket and setting it on a nearby chair. He took the opportunity to look around her room. It was fairly large and very pink. Pretty much what he'd expected.

She tossed him a water bottle which he easily catched, even though he wasn't really paying attention.

"What's this for?" he asked, looking down at the bottle in his hands.

"It's important to keep your vocal chords hydrated, or they can result in a scratchy, and unpleasant voice. I assume we're going to be taxing our vocal chords considerably tonight."

Again, he had to look away from her to keep his breath steady.

"Right. All the singing," he stated, taking a large chug.

* * *

They ran through the song completely twice, then started working on the choreography again.

Rachel felt that it was too tense, but also needed more flair. She had an idea to make it a story-type performance, but right from the beginning.

"Okay, I know you'll probably shoot it down right away, but the beginning of the song is about two people that other people think are lovers, right?"

He nodded slowly, leaning against her dresser.

"Okay, so we should incorporate that into the song. Say, we walk up either holding hands or linking arms or something, but then when it gets to the "people are talking" line, we pull away, making it look like we don't want people to think there's something there that isn't there. What do you think?" She waited for him to respond.

"So, like ... right from when we stand up, or when the music is cued, or what?" He was curious.

She shrugged. "We could make a point of standing off to one side, then when we cue the music, we could hold hands and walk to the centre of the stage, maybe look like we're talking about something secret? Does that sound stupid?"

Actually, he was liking the idea more and more. More than he should.

"Um, no, it sounds good. Let's try it."

He moved to the far wall, by the window, motioning for her to join him.

He held out his hand for her to take, just as she was going for the crook of his elbow. They chuckled, and both swapped positions, ending up opposite again. Rachel laughed it off, tucking her hand between his arm and his side, but then hestitantly slid it down to slip her hand into his.

She felt a small spark at the touch, but focused on starting the music with the remote for her stereo.

They walked slowly into the middle of the room, her eyes flickering up to his before looking back in front of her.

When her part came, she was about to break contact with him, but he tightened his grip. Going with it, she continued singing until it got to the part about laughing just a little too loud. He loosened his grip, and she understood his meaning, stepping away when she sang, "we stand just a little too close". She held his gaze as she sang "we stare just a little too long", feeling the air around her practically electrify.

They finished the song with the new choreography, and when they were done, Rachel made a quick note of the changes before turning to Puck.

"That was great. Your improvisation was perfect," she complimented.

He shrugged. "It was nothing."

"No, it's was good. It fits the song perfectly. I think we're gonna do great tomorrow," she assured him.

Puck nodded. "Can we work on the ending again? I still feel like the last turn is a bit shaky."

She nodded. "Sure."

She skipped the song ahead, pressing play when the song was in almost to the last repeat of the chorus. She paused it where she wanted it, then pulled him over to stand behind her, fixing his hands in the proper place on her hips. She was fully aware of how close he was to her, how her hair was pulled over one shoulder so that he could look down and get a better image of where his feet and hands should be. She squared their hips, showing him the flow of the motion. He held back a groan when she did a slow-motion run-through of the spin.

His eyes flared, but he held his composure, not letting her know his dirty thoughts. They completed the song, and he nearly had a fit when she sank down his body, and then pulled her back up. When he brought his hand to her chin, he thought he could see a question in her eyes ... wondering if he was going to do more improvising.

It was tempting. Oh so tempting.

But instead, he simply finished the song, told her he had to go, and left her room and house as quickly as possible, needing to get some fresh air.

When he was safely in his truck and driving away from her house, he let out a shaky breath.

"Not happening. No way in hell ... am I falling for Rachel fucking Berry."

* * *

_End of chapter nine. _

_Hehe. Loved writing that scene. _

_Hope you guys liked it. _

_Reviews are very much appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


	10. Chapter 10

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Ten._

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Chapters 1 & 7. _

_..._

_A/N: I can't believe how many reviews I have on this story. I should probably be studying for my 2nd batch of midterms right now ... but this is more fun. _

_Alright, this chapter: the Rachel/Puck performance! Yay! I'm so excited to write that scene. _

_I'm so happy you guys are still enjoying this story, and that I'm still getting new readers. _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

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When it was time for Glee, Rachel was nervous. She walked in with Owen holding her hand, wondering how her friends were going to respond to his presence. She had already cleared it with Mr Shuester, so that wouldn't be a problem, and the Cheerios were the ones who'd suggested it, so she knew she wouldn't have a problem there. She was, however, concerned about the other football guys. Puck had said he was fine with it, but she didn't want there to be any tension, or worse ... a fight.

She sat in back, mostly because while she wanted Owen to see her performance - and maybe get him more interested in music - she figured it would be better if he didn't have to watch her and Puck dance right up from the front. Plus, there was less of a chance he could attack Puck from the back of the room, without someone stopping him.

Puck had been acting weird last night ... she really hoped he wasn't going to back out of the performance. She was pleased with what they'd come up with, but she would have felt better if they'd rehearsed it a few more times. Maybe they would have even come up with something better than what they already had.

Puck had an eye for adding pieces in that just worked.

Rachel smiled when she saw him walk in, but it faltered from her face when he spotted Owen, and then immediately made a beeline for them.

"Hey, Berry," he greeted, sitting on the opposite side of her.

"Hello," she said back, glancing between the boys on either side of her.

They were saved from any small talk when Mr Shuester walked into the room.

"Alright, let's get started. Today is the day you present your songs. First up: Tina and Artie.

.....................................................................................................................................................................................

Mr Shuester had purposefully left Rachel and Puck's song until the very end. He was looking forward to seeing them perform, as they had sounded really good together the last few times he'd heard them, and wanted to end the day on a good note. Something to go home and smile about.

"Alright, last but not least: Rachel, Puck, let's hear it. Get on down here," he urged enthusiastically.

Rachel let go of Owen's hand, which had become oddly sweaty, and stood, casually wiping her palm on the material of her skirt.

She and Puck walked to the band, explaining the cue, and then stood by the far wall, ready to begin.

Rachel allowed her eyes to flicker to Owen once before she slid her hand into Puck's, noticing his eyebrows twitch. She ignored him, and everyone else in the room, as she nodded to the band to begin the song.

They began playing, the same song but with less of a country twang to it.

Rachel and Puck walked slowly into the middle of the room, Puck leaning down and whispering conspiratorially.

"Are we having fun yet?" he wondered, as part of their act was to look like they were just walking and chatting, lost in their own world.

"Loads," she commented back with a light smile.

"Well, let's give 'em a show," he teased, before it was time for her to sing.

"People are talking," she sang, glancing up at him as though she were telling him a story. "Talking 'bout people. I hear them whisper," she glanced around at their audience, but didn't really look at any of them. "You won't believe it! They think we're lovers, kept under cover."

She saw Puck smirk at that, and told herself it was part of the performance.

"I just ignored it, but they keep saying: We laugh just a little too loud."

He turned into her, something they hadn't rehearsed, and touched the point of her elbow with the tips of his fingers.

Like a true professional, she continued as though nothing had changed, stepping lightly away from him with her hand on his chest.

"We stand just a little too close," she sang, eyes downcast before bringing them back up to catch his gaze. "We stare just a little too long. Maybe they're seeing, something we don't, Darlin'."

He pulled her back towards him for the chorus, singing with her, "**Let's give them something to talk about. Let's give them something to talk about. Let's give them something to talk about! How about love?**"

Rachel prepared to step away so he could sing his verse, and follow the steps they'd planned out, but he splayed his hand out across her back, holding her in place.

"_I feel so foolish,"_ he sang, looking at her without his trademark smirk or cocky grin. "_I've never noticed. You act so nervous,"_ he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, trailing his fingers across her cheek. "_Could you be falling for me?"_

Puck placed his hands on her hips, walking around her as he sang, going completely off-script. Rachel swallowed roughly, not knowing exactly how to respond.

"_It took a rumor, to make me wonder. Now I'm convinced, that I am going under!" _he said, putting as much conviction and honesty into the words as he could. He could see she'd noticed it, and her eyes softened, smiling lightly at him, oblivious to their audience.

"_Thinking 'bout you every day," _he sang, taking the tips of her fingers and holding her arm up, his hand ghosting over it._ "Dream 'bout you every night."_ He added a wicked grin when he sang that, waggling his eyebrows and making her chuckle.

"_I'm hoping that you feel the same way. Now that we know it, let's really show it, Darlin'!"_

She turned with him, stepping in as close as they'd rehearsed, and then a fraction of an inch closer.

"**Let's give them something to talk about,**" they sang, moving in a circle. "**A little mystery to figure out, babe. Let's give them something to talk about! How about love, love, love?**"

He took a breath, drawing her closer for a second and making her gasp before his hands fixed on her hips and spun her away perfectly. He followed her to the end of the room, catching her arm before she turned and pushed him back, her hands almost digging into his chest, before she took another stride and fell dramatically into his arms, sinking down.

He picked her up easily, as though he'd done it a hundred times, drawing her towards him with a finger on her chin. His head dipped towards her, and her eyes flared as she realized he was doing more improvising. Would he? Would she stop him?

His mouth stopped millimeters away from hers, before he pulled back, cueing her step.

Her eyes flashed dangerously, and she walked around him, her nails scratching against the material of his shirt and sending shivers up his spine. He turned when she was behind him, pulling her back towards him with more force than necessary, almost slamming their bodies into each other, but neither of them missed a beat.

"**Let's give them something to talk about! A little mystery to figure out,**" they sang into each other's eyes, holding the last word for emphasis. "**Let's give them something to talk about! How about ... love?**"

Her hands had found their way to his triceps, gripping the firm muscles as they finished the song.

They breathed in unison, their bodies pressed tightly together.

Rachel's eyes were wide and wandering, where his were calm and set, even though his body was telling him a different story.

They were brought back to Earth as the room erupted with applause.

"That was amazing!" Mr Shuester complimented, standing by the piano and clapping.

The other kids were smiling and whooping, even a few wolf-whistles could be heard from Mike and Matt's general direction.

Rachel stepped away from Puck, dropping her arms to her sides and smiling in appreciation.

"Rachel, that was amazing choreography, I am beyond impressed," Mr Shuester told him, sliding up to the two of them in the middle of the room.

Rachel shook her head. "Then you should be impressed with Puck, Mr Shuester. Most of it was his improvisation, I was just following his lead," she confessed, daring herself to glance up at Owen.

His skin was several shades darker, and he appeared to be gripping his chair so hard that his knuckles were turning white.

_Oh boy ..._

Rachel excused herself to pull Owen out of the room.

"Are you okay?"

He gritted his teeth. "How do you expect me to respond to that?"

Rachel shrugged. "I'm not sure, but definitely not like this."

He stepped into her personal space, his face close to hers. "I thought I was coming here to see you perform, not to watch you have foreplay!"

"Lower your voice," she told him in a quiet voice.

"Why? Wouldn't want your friends hear you having a conversation with your boyfriend? 'Cause it seems like you've forgotten which one your boyfriend is!" he hollered, and then was slammed into the nearest wall.

She had fully expected Puck to start a fight with him, but what she didn't expect was for Mercedes and Britney to be right behind him.

"Back off," Puck snarled.

Mercedes crossed her arms over her chest. "Oh no, you didn't, white boy!" she declared, standing in front of Rachel.

Rachel spoke, "You guys, I can handle it. It's just a misunderstanding."

Puck looked over his shoulder at her in exasperation. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Can you please unhand him?" she asked in a steady voice.

He bit his tongue, going against every fibre in his being when he released him.

Rachel stepped forward, feeling her friends behind her. It was touching.

"I thought you were coming here to support me, but instead you degrade my entire performance, and then yell at me like I've done some unspeakable thing," she told him. "I'm sorry, but I can't be in a relationship with someone who treats me like that."

Owen glared down at her. "So, you're breaking up with me over a stupid "glee club" thing?"

Rachel stood her ground. "The fact that you think it's a "stupid glee club thing", proves exactly how little we have in common. This is my passion. You don't get that, and I don't get you. So, I think it would be best if you left. I'm sure I can find another ride home."

He stared at her in confusion and anger, not wanting to leave.

Mr Shuester stepped out of the classroom. "Young man, you're no longer welcome in this school. You were invited to watch a performance, that's all. I think it's best if you leave now."

Puck stared him down, and finally Owen pushed off of the wall and stormed out of the hallway.

Rachel sighed, looking down at the ground.

Mr Shuester cleared his throat. "Well ... great practice today, guys. I'll see you tomorrow. Rachel, do you need -?"

"I'm fine, Mr Shue," she told him, wiping discretely at her eyes.

He nodded, returning to the room to grab his bag.

The girls gathered around Rachel, concerned for her.

Puck stood off to the side, wanting to say something, but hating when girls cried. It was one of his few weaknesses.

"He was a total tool," Kurt commented, joining with the people surrounding Rachel.

Britney nodded. "He didn't deserve you at all."

"What he did just wasn't right at all," Mercedes offered.

Rachel nodded. "I know. I'm fine. I think I'm just gonna ... go call one of my dads to pick me up."

Puck stepped forward. "I can drive you."

Rachel tentatively looked up at him. "I don't want to put you out."

He shook his head. "It's fine. It's on my way," he said, telling her the same thing he'd told her last time.

She nodded after a moment. "Okay. Thank you."

"No problem," he said, returning to the classroom for his backpack and guitar.

Quinn and Britney watched them leave the school together. "That was ..."

"Yeah."

Quinn looked at Britney. "Is it bad that I still want to go ahead with our plan?"

Britney shook her head. "Nope. In fact, I think we should step it up. Let's talk to Ms. Sylvester."

Quinn nodded. "Perfect."

.....................................................................................................................................................................................

Puck dropped her off at her house, walking around to grab her bag out of the box of his truck.

"Thanks," she told him, her tears having subsided.

"Don't sweat it," he replied, sticking his hands in his pockets.

"I'm sorry about ... I didn't mean to wreck our duet with that as a finale."

He shook his head. "Nah. We totally nailed it."

She smiled lightly at that. "That was some good improvisation. Surprising. But good."

"Thanks," he mumbled. "I just kind of ... went with it."

"Well, it worked," she complimented.

She walked up to her front door, holding her bag awkwardly in her hands. "Well ... thanks, again."

He nodded. "No problem. You know ... if you need a ride, tomorrow, I usually come in early to run laps."

She smiled. "That would be nice. Thank you."

He shrugged. "You don't have to thank me for everything."

Rachel bounced on the balls of her feet. "I just believe that when people have done something good, it should be acknowledged."

"Okay, then," Puck said. "Well ... see you tomorrow, then?"

Rachel nodded, the weird feeling in her stomach returning. "7:30 okay?"

He nodded his agreement.

"Then I'll see you then."

Puck walked back to his truck, his hands still in his pockets.

Rachel thought a moment before calling out, "So, I guess you don't have any reason to get someone to throw a slushie at him now, do you?"

Puck paused, then turned his head and threw a smirk back at her before sliding into his truck and driving away.

Rachel opened the door to her house, feeling sad about no longer having a boyfriend, but confident that she'd made the right decision.

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_End of chapter ten. _

_Hope you liked it! I know I loved writing it! _

_Now I have to spend the next hour and a half studying for my midterm. *Groan* _

_Reviews are appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


	11. Chapter 11

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Eleven._

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: As usual, you guys are amazing. You are my inspiration! _

_And yes: that good for nothing Owen is finally out of the picture. Lol ... yeah, I just really wanted to say "good for nothing". _

_Yeah ... so the whole studying thing didn't really happen. I basically glanced over my notes and then went back to writing the next chapter. Oh well ... at the very least I'll get a C. Not the end of the world. _

_As hinted by a few of my loyal readers, I'm bringing the Cheerio Rachel back in this chapter. I still haven't decided if I'm going to make it permanent, but for now ... we'll see. I just love the idea of her in the cheerleading outfit, waving the pom-poms for Puck. _

_*Smile* _

_So, with almost no further ado, let's get on with the story! _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

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Owen had tried calling her a couple times the previous night, but Rachel had ignored him, telling her dads that she'd broken things off with him, and that she wasn't interested in talking to him any more.

They assured her that they'd deal with him if he kept it up. She smiled at the memory, sitting beside Puck as he drove her to school.

"Thanks again," she said, hoping to break the silence.

Puck sighed. "If you keep thanking me, you can ride in the box."

He gestured behind her, and she grinned. "That would be an experience."

He paused at that, deciding that he didn't like the effect she had on him when she used words like "experience", or grinned like she was.

They pulled up to the school, gathering their things out of the truck before making their way inside. They had reached the doors, and were about to part ways when Quinn and Britney ran up to them, hiding something behind their backs.

"Hey!" Britney greeted, grinning excitedly.

"Um, hi," Rachel replied, looking worriedly between the two. She wondered briefly if they were going to slushie her, remembering that she hadn't packed an extra set of clothes that morning.

"Close your eyes," Quinn urged, practically bouncing.

Rachel hesitated. "Why?"

"Just do it," they both said.

Rachel squinted, then decided to temp fate and closed her eyes. She heard them moving around, and was tempted to open her eyes early.

She heard Puck shift beside her, and then the two girls said, "Okay, open!"

She slowly opened her eyes, looking at the display in front of her.

It was a Cheerios outfit, just like the one she'd worn before, but with one noticeable difference. Her name was stitched into the left arm, standing out against the fabric, much like Quinn's and Britney's names did.

"You ... what?"

Quinn smiled. "We talked to Ms Sylvester, and we want you to join the Cheerios!"

"Seriously?" Rachel asked, not believing it.

"Seriously!" they chanted back.

"I ... I don't know what to say," she stuttered.

Britney offered, "You could say yes, take the unifrorm, and meet us on the field in ten?"

Rachel thought about it for a moment, but then held her hands out for the outfit. "Okay."

The other girls smiled, glancing between Puck and Rachel. "Well, we'll leave you to alone," Quinn hinted. "And we'll see you on the field in ten, Rachel."

Rachel nodded, shocked and a bit out of it.

Puck cleared his throat beside her. "So ... you're a Cheerio now."

Rachel glanced up at him. "Didn't see that one coming."

Puck nodded. "So, you'll be at all the games, cheering and ... bouncing around?"

Rachel shrugged. "I guess so. Is that bad?"

He looked away. "No. It's good. I'm just gonna ... go for my run now."

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Rachel knew that Ms Sylvester was a harsh coach, but as she always pushed herself to be better, she excelled under her megaphone-enhanced, bark of a voice, and her comments about Hepatitis and water-boarding.

The cheers and routines were fairly easy to grasp once she had the proper amount of time to practice them, and the added excersize was doing wonders for her endorphins.

She'd seen Puck running laps around the field while she attended her first Cheerios practice. He was in excellent physical shape. More than excellent, really. Finn was tall, and decently built, but his muscle definition was nowhere near Puck's, and Owen ... he was more wiry.

Rachel paused on her way to the fountain. _Since when did I start comparing them? _

She wondered what people would think when she walked down the hall - or attended class - in her Cheerios outfit. She still kept her change of clothes with her, just incase someone didn't want her on the "team", and decided to slushie her new outfit.

She'd suggested that maybe she should only wear it when necesarry, but Quinn and Britney assured her that it was part of being on the squad, wearing the outfit. They wouldn't force her, but they told her it looked great on her, and she should feel comfortable in it.

She was still trying to wrap her head around the fact she she was a Cheerio. A cheerleader. A skimpy-outfit-wearing, pom-pom-waving, peppy, giddy cheerleader. The mere thought of it made her giggle.

"They say laughing to yourself is one of the first signs of early senility," Puck said from behind her.

She grinned. "Done with your run?"

He nodded, basking in his manly sweat.

She crossed her arms self-consciously.

"It looks good on you," he commented before heading into the showers.

Rachel stared after him for a moment before heading to her locker. _Don't be stupid, Rachel. He's only being nice. _

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The entire school was buzzing once more, and once again it was about Rachel Berry. More specifically, the fact that Rachel Berry, the target of most of the school's torments and pranks, was a Cheerio. And somehow it had gotten out that she'd dumped the football player from Oakland, and the story had somehow gotten exaggerated, and people were coming up to her in the hallway, congratulating her on putting the Oaklander in his place.

She found all the attention confusing, flattering, and overwhelming.

Rachel found it hard to believe that less than a couple months ago, she'd been the most hated girl in the school, and wanted nothing more than to be a part of something special. Now, she found herself with so much: lead female vocals in Glee club, new member of the Cheerios, and a wide variety of friends that she liked, and they liked her back.

It was exhilerating.

She tried not to let all the attention go to her head, and sat next to the original glee kids at lunch. Mercedes and Kurt fawned over her new outfit, while Tina and Artie stated their happiness that she still hung out with them.

Suddenly another table was pushed into theirs.

Mike, Matt, Puck and Finn sat down at the table they'd brought over to theirs.

"Sup, hottie?" Matt joked, earning a swat from Britney when she and Quinn walked up behind them.

Quinn spotted an opportunity, and nudged Puck. "Hey, move over. I wanna sit next to Finn."

He complied, moving into the empty seat next to Rachel, forcing his eyes away from the amount of leg that was showing from her new skirt.

Britney leaned across Matt to talk to Rachel and Puck. "You know, your guys' song was really great yesterday. You should consider performing it in the talent show."

Puck spoke up, "Aren't we already doing a group song for the talent show?"

The blonde girl nodded. "Yeah, but you two could do a second one. I think you'd have a real shot at winning."

Rachel shrugged, not wanting to press her luck with Puck. "It's something to consider," she stated carefully.

Puck grunted noncommittally, keeping his eyes firmly in front of him.

"Are you okay?" Rachel wondered, placing a hand on his shoulder.

He jumped at the contact, biting into his straw. "Fine. Just ... spent."

Rachel nodded in understanding. "I'm sure. That was a pretty lengthy run you took this morning."

"You think I can't handle a little exertion?" he taunted, giving her a look she couldn't quite identify, but he had the familiar glint in his eyes.

"I'm sure you can handle any task you set your mind to," she replied.

"That and then some," he commented, sucking some slushie up the straw.

It was grape.

He finished half of it, then slid it over to her.

"What?" she wondered.

"I'm bloated," he answered simply. "You can finish it. It'll just go to waste, otherwise."

She felt a small flutter at the gesture, slowly taking the cup in her hand. She could feel most of the eyes at the table on her, and she wondered if they were expecting her to get a new straw, or flip it over or something.

But, she was feeling ... well, she couldn't exactly describe what she was feeling at the moment. Happy, excited, and a small combination of dangerous and flirtation was mixed in there somewhere. She couldn't explain why, but she decided she didn't care at that moment, and wrapped her lips around the straw, sipping the liquid into her mouth.

She smirked. "My favorite."

Puck replied, "Told you."

Rachel felt a strange sensation filling her. She was experiencing it more and more often, and usually whenever she looked at -

"A bunch of Oaklanders just trashed someone's truck!" someone yelled out, sending everyone into a frenzy.

Rachel felt a sinking feeling in her gut as she ran out into the parking lot with the others to see Puck's truck covered in black spray paint.

The words, "Pansy", "Douche", and "Bitch" were written on each of the sides and the front, and his front headlights had been smashed out.

Puck slammed down on the hood of his truck, eyeing the road leading out of the parking lot.

"I'm sorry," Rachel told him. "If I hadn't ... we should call the police."

Puck considered that, but decided that course of action was far too boring. And very un-Puck-like.

"Don't worry, I'll deal with it," he told her.

She looked at him in worry. "Puck, he trashed your truck. You shouldn't let him get away with it. And you definitely shouldn't solve it with your fists."

He smirked at Kurt, his anger temporarily set aside. "Oh, don't worry, I won't be doing either of those things."

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_End of chapter eleven. _

_Short, I know, but I wanted to get the next chapter up before my next class. Totally kicked ass on my midterm. _

_I hope you liked this section, more to come! _

_Reviews are proudly appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


	12. Chapter 12

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Twelve. _

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: Thanks again for the awesome reviews. I can't stress enough how important you guys are to this story. You make me want to write and write and write some more. _

_I plan on finally revealing Kurt's plan in this chapter, but it might be the next depending on the length. _

_I'm so happy you guys are still loving this, it's so much fun to write, I'm finding myself getting lost in these characters. _

_So, without any more chatter from me, here's chapter twelve!_

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

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Mike and Matt made their way through the halls of Oakland High as discretely as possible, with Kurt and Britney acting as their lookouts.

Britney had changed out of her Cheerio outfit, as the situation called for anonymity.

Kurt poked his head out carefully around the entrance to the football field, ensure the players were absorbed in their practice.

He nodded to Britney, who was further down the hall, who in turn motioned to Mike and Matt that they were clear to go in.

They moved swiftly through the locker room, looking for a specific subby.

Finally, Mike spotted a jacket he'd seen the other day. Digging through the pockets, he found ID with Owen Peters's name on it.

"Jackpot!" he whispered to Matt, bringing him his way.

Matt took the backpack while Mike continued searching his coat pockets. Having no luck, he turned to Matt to see him smirking, dangling the keys in the air.

Mike pulled the compression pad out of his pocket, differentiating between his car, locker, and house keys. There were two that looked like they could be house keys, so he copied them both, giving the keys back to Matt to put back in place.

As an added measure, on their way out of the locker room they gathered all the clothes they could find, and tossing them in the showers, turning the water on and bolting out of the room.

They grinned at their cleverness, snickering all down the hall as they grabbed Kurt and Britney and rushed to their cars.

Mike dialed Puck's number, only having to wait two rings before it was answered. "We got it."

................................................................................................................................................................................

Puck had the utmost - well, almost - confidence in Kurt's abilities, but he wanted to be there to make sure everything went off without a hitch. He cleared it with the school, telling them that he and Kurt would be taking Quinn to her doctor's appointment that day, instead of Finn. Britney had discretely learned from Rachel that both of Owen's parents worked during the day, so they decided to leave the school at eleven, giving them plenty of time to be back either during or after lunch.

Puck drove down the street, parking Kurt's truck a block away so that no one would be able to connect any suspicious looking truck lingering around to Owen's house.

He and Kurt walked casually up to the front door, Kurt trying to inconspicuously look around to see if anyone was watching them.

"Cut it out," Puck grunted, sliding the first key into the knob.

It didn't work.

He caught Kurt's glance, removing the key and then trying the next one.

It clicked. They both breathed a sigh of relief, making their way into the house, carefully closing the door behind them.

"Are we sure that no one's home?" Kurt asked worriedly.

"Yes," Puck breathed, taking in the layout of the house.

"What if we get arrested?" he asked next.

Puck sighed. "Then keep your back to the wall, and don't drop the soap."

Kurt widened his eyes in response, and Puck smirked. "I'm screwing with you. Just hurry you. You have everything, right?"

Kurt nodded, holding up his bag of tricks.

"Okay, what's the first stop?"

Kurt thought for a moment. "Bathroom."

................................................................................................................................................................................

The boys returned to school once they were done, and if Puck was ever going to giggle like a school girl, this may have been that moment.

Quinn sauntered in behind them, trying to look as though she'd been to the doctor's, instead of the mall.

Kurt was giddy. He'd never done something so ... evil.

"I think the most vicious part was when we replaced his shampoo with Nair!" Kurt told Quinn.

She clapped her hand over her mouth, nearly doubling over with laughter.

"Oh, that's gonna hurt so much!"

"That's the point," Puck informed her.

"And what was your contribution?" she asked him, walking down the hall to the cafeteria.

He smirked, "So many to choose from ... I'm gonna have to say the itching powder on all of his underwear."

Quinn's eyes widened, her grin growing by the second.

"What's so funny?" Rachel wondered, walking up to them.

The boys stopped short, but Quinn covered them. "It's just ... the hormones, you know? They got me acting all wacky."

"Oh, of course," Rachel replied. "Where were you guys?"

Kurt answered, "Doctor's appointment. Finn was busy."

Rachel nodded in understanding. "Alright, well we saved a seat for you, incase you got here before lunch." She looked to Quinn. "And Santana's looking for you."

Quinn nodded, making her way down the hall.

Rachel looked back and forth between Puck and Kurt. She squinted her eyes at them suspiciously. "You have guilty in your eyes."

Puck snorted. "Hell no."

"Of course you don't," she replied. "I was referring to Kurt. You are looking very pleased with yourself, which is never a good sign."

Puck pursed his lips, holding back a grin.

"Did you do what I think you did?"

Puck ushered them down the hall, towards the cafeteria. "Berry, I wouldn't want to get caught in the inner workings of your mind."

................................................................................................................................................................................

Owen practically fell into the shower after returning home from football practice. It had been a long day, an even longer week. He'd been expecting a physical retaliation from Puckerman, but so far had gotten nothing.

He smirked. _Knew he was a pansy._

One he'd gotten home, he'd simply chucked his football gear in his room, stripped his gear off and turned on the water.

He was annoyed at Rachel for dumping him over something so stupid, and was trying to figure out how he could get her back while still sticking it to the McKinley High jocks.

He flicked his shampoo bottle open, pouring a generous amount onto his scalp and rubbing it in.

It felt weird, but he chalked it up to his exhaustion and let the cleanser work it's magic, letting the hot water soak over his back. He got lost in his thoughts, trying to come up with a good enough argument for Rachel to take him back.

He didn't know how much later it was, but he must have been really tired because the water was losing some of its heat. He figured he should probably get out and get his stuff hung up, so he dipped his head under the tap to rinse the shampoo out of his hair.

Something was wrong. It was stiff, and every time he moved his hands in it, it pulled on his scalp.

"What the - ah! Son of a -"

................................................................................................................................................................................

Puck dropped Rachel off at home after glee, and he expected her to leave the truck right away, but she turned to face him.

"Do I want to know what you did?" she asked him.

He put on his innocent face, but before he could speak, she cut him off. "Without the 'I don't know what you're talking about', if you don't mind?"

Puck sighed. "I said I'd deal with it, Berry."

She shook her head. "I'll never understand how the male mind works."

"And that's a bad thing?" he joked.

Rachel sighed. "Good point." She looked down at her hands. "I just ... I don't want to see you get hurt over this ... over me."

Puck shifted uncomfortably. "What makes you think this is about you?"

She looked out the window. "No, of course not. What I mean is that ... it just seems like my dating Owen caused all this, and I'd hate to see something happen to yo - anyone - because of that."

He cleared his throat, flexing his hands on the wheel. "I can take care of myself."

She nodded. "No, I know that. And that's good. I just ... ugh, I don't even know what I'm trying to say."

She had her hand on the door handle, and something in Puck caused him to speak. "Um, I don't know if Quinn or Santana told you, but we're having a belated victory party at Finn's house. You been a Cheerio ... you could come. If you wanted."

Rachel looked over her shoulder. "Oh, um ... yeah, maybe."

"Cool," Puck commented, running a hand over his hair casually.

"Thanks for the ride," she said again.

He rolled his eyes. "See you tomorrow."

Rachel nodded, stepping out of the truck and heading into her house, the flippy material of her skirt bouncing with every step.

Puck groaned, thinking that perhaps he shouldn't have invited her to the party. He only consoled himself with the idea that maybe she would wear something that was less ... hugging her in every part of her body, should she show up at the party.

"I'm a bad, bad man," he muttered before driving away.

................................................................................................................................................................................

_End of chapter twelve. _

_Hope you liked it. I looked it up, and apparently you would have to use twice as much Nair as shampoo to remove the hair from the head, so I had them dump out the shampoo and replace it with Nair instead. _

_I don't know how many more chapters this story will have ... I almost don't want to end it, I'm having so much fun writing it. _

_I really want to write the talent show scene, so I might save that for either an epilogue or a sequel. _

_Anyways, that's all for now. _

_Reviews are appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...!_


	13. Chapter 13

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Thirteen (and my favorite number!)_

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: Thanks for the speedy reviews, guys. I'll try to get this chapter up before I go to bed. _

_Also, thank you to "Hips" for pointing out my Rachel/Quinn mistake in the last chapter, it has since been fixed. _

_So, I was going to start this chapter off right away at the party, but I wanted to show some scenes where Rachel is worrying about the party. _

_I'm happy you guys liked the "I'm a bad, bad man" line, it was one of my favorites to write, just 'cause I can clearly picture Mark Salling saying those words, and then I have to go have a girly squeal. *Sigh*. _

_Also, just incase I didn't make it clear (I'm pretty sure I didn't): Quinn is pregnant in my story, but the baby is Finn's, and not Pucks. I've decided. That in itself kinda makes this story AU, but oh well. And never, in any of my Glee stories, will you ever find any hint of Finn/Rachel. Just say no. _

_Anywhoo ... here's chapter thirteen! I hope you enjoy it! _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

................................................................................................................................................................................

Rachel met up with Quinn and Britney after practice the next day, slightly nervous about the party. She'd already cleared it with her dads, being completely upfront with them. They had a very open and honest relationship, and she always knew she could talk to them about anything. They knew she would be responsible, and gave her permission to go and have fun with her new friends.

Rachel's only concern now was wardrobe.

While she normally considered herself to be fairly fashionable, she doubted her comfort-over-style approach would be appropriate for the evening.

"Hey, can I talk to you?" she asked the blonde girls.

"Sure," Britney said, taking a sip out of her water bottle. "What's up?"

"Well, Puck invited me to the party at Finn's, and -"

She was cut off by Britney's squeal.

"What?" Rachel asked.

Quinn nudged her with her elbow, telling her with her eyes to calm down. "Don't mind her, she's just had a lot of caffeine today. You were saying?"

Rachel eyed Britney warily, but continued. "He invited me, but as you may know, I've never been to social events such as these, and I'm not sure as to the protocol for wardrobe. I was hoping you might assist me with some ideas."

Quinn scrunched her nose. "So, to translate: you want help picking out an outfit?"

Rachel nodded.

"Why didn't you just say that in the first place?" Britney asked dramatically, linking arms with her and leading her out of the school, intend on heading straight to the mall.

................................................................................................................................................................................

Rachel had invited the others from glee to come with her, wanting some familiarity as she stepped into the foreign situation, but Artie and Tina declined, planning to spend the evening "working" on things for glee. Kurt was already going, as he was on the football team, and Mercedes had decided to come along, but would be arriving with Kurt.

She felt weird in the dress she, Quinn and Britney had picked out. It was black, with a light, swirly kind of design at the bottom where it came to a rest on her mid-thigh. It also had an added wrap-around skirt that came with it, adding a bit of length and swoosh. The upper part of the dress was tighter than Rachel would have liked, but Quinn and Britney assured her it looked fantastic, and had even talked her into buying a strapless bra because the straps were so thin.

She'd already had the perfect half-heels to go with the dress, so she let herself think that she didn't go completely all-out for the party. She still sort of felt as though she didn't really belong. And she wasn't sure why she'd felt the need to dress up at all. They hadn't said anything about the party being formal, but that's what she felt like. It actually felt a lot like one of her many costumes.

She shook the thought from her head. Tonight would not be a performance. She would simply have fun and hang out with her peers and "teammates".

Squaring her shoulders, she tapped on the door, but then when she realized she could hear the music through the door, she knocked louder.

A few seconds later, a football player answered the door. She thought his name was Nathan ... or maybe Nate.

He whistled low, the alcohol on his breath both unmistakable and unavoidable. "Damn, Rachel ... you look fine."

She shifted uncomfortably. "Um, thank you. May I come in?"

He gave her an odd look before stepping back, holding the door open while leaning on it for support.

She crossed the threshold, joking in her mind that she had passed the point of no return.

She glanced around her eyes searching for someone familiar for her to talk to.

She spotted Mercedes and Kurt by the punch table which she assumed would be spiked, and made her way over to them.

"Damn, girl," Mercedes commented, causing Kurt to turn around.

"Oh my ... that dress is fabulous!" he cooed, taking her in from head to toe.

Rachel smiled. "Thanks. Although, I'm not entirely convinced it's appropriate."

Kurt shook his head. "Uh-uh. Flaunt what you got, Rach."

She grinned back, glancing at the punch bowl. Maybe there was some orange juice or a soda in the kitchen.

She excused herself, making her way to where she assumed the kitchen would be. She was right, but there was already someone occupying the refrigerator.

"Oh, hello," she greeted, standing in the doorway.

Puck turned at the sound of her voice, and had to force back a loud swallow when he saw her outfit. _Why? Why must you exist to torment me? Oh, the things I would do to you if I didn't think you knew several ways of killing me with your bare hands._

"Hi," he said simply, closing the door to the fridge after pulling out a beer. "Want one?"

She shook her head. "I was actually looking for a soda."

He turned, reached into the fridge and pulled out a purple can, tossing it to her. He didn't trust himself to hand it to her.

She smiled. "My favorite."

"So ... you decided to come after all," he stated, then shook himself internally for the obviousness of that statement.

"Yeah. I figured it might be fun after all," she replied, tapping her fingers lightly on the can in her hands.

"Well ... we should probably get back in there," he told her. "Wouldn't want Mercedes to think I kidnapped you."

Rachel chuckled at that. "I don't know. I'd kinda like to see what she'd do to you."

"Don't tease, Berry," he told her, then almost groaned when she turned around. The back of her dress was even better than the front.

................................................................................................................................................................................

Rachel was getting antsy. She wanted to dance, or do something other than stand around chatting while various members of the football team ogled her. She'd had a few offers that she politely refused, not really wanting to experience horny, drunk, teenage hands all over her person.

So, she chose the safest bet, and practically begged Kurt to dance with her.

He relented, wanting nothing more than shake his "groove thang".

A fast-paced song came on, and they made their way through the crowd until they found an empty enough space in the living room.

She giggled as Kurt strutted around her, drawing the attention of most of the people in the room. She moved to the beat with Kurt, letting herself enjoy the feeling of actually being happy and having fun with others.

The song ended, and a slower one came on, and Kurt departed for a much needed water-break. Rachel stood in the middle of the room awkardly, still feeling the rush from the dance, but her buzz quickly fading.

She was about to make her way back to Mercedes when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

She turned to see Puck behind her. She raised her eyebrows slightly, waiting for him to speak, but his mouth only parted for a second, before he closed it again and held a hand out.

She caught his meaning and nodded after a minute. Dancing with him wasn't something that was new to her, they'd practiced plenty of times ... but this felt different.

Rachel stepped into his comfort zone, placing her hands softly on his shoulders as he carefully drew her into his arms. Even with her heels, he was much taller than her. She was thankful for that, as it would have been awkward to be looking into his eyes while dancing so ... intimately with him.

Rachel shushed her brain, telling herself it was ridiculous to think such a thing. He was only trying to be nice to her, and as she'd proven with Kurt, friends danced together. She wouldn't let herself fall for him when she doubted he would ever feel the same for her. It was just such a preposterous thought.

She felt a light tickle run through her side, and she wondered if Puck was aware that his thumb was moving back and forth slowly.

She felt the familiar flush run over her, and she subconsciously drew closer to him, fixing her eyes on a random spot on his shirt. _It's a good shirt. Clean. Not at all ridiculously well-fitting and attractive ..._

The song continued, and Rachel found herself trapped. Weird feelings were bouncing around inside of her, trying to break free. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew what they were. But she couldn't bring herself to say the words. After what had happened with Owen, she wasn't sure opening up that door again, so soon, was a good idea. Not to mention the fact he'd once held so much contempt for her that he'd claimed she made him want to light himself on fire.

That was never a good thing.

She felt her heart racing in her chest, and wondered if she placed her ear on his chest, if she'd feel the same thing.

_When did you turn into such a lovesick puppy? Except for the love part ... and the puppy. Ugh, I'm confusing myself in my own head!_

She moved her head to flick the hair out of her eyes, and she felt Puck grip her sides a little tighter. As though he'd thought she was pulling away.

"Berry," he breathed out, and she looked up at him.

"You know ... you are allowed to use my first name," she told him.

He glanced down at her with hazy eyes.

"What?"

Her back arched a little to look at him properly, wondering when she'd gotten _that_ close to him. "My first name ... Rachel. You could call me Rachel. I wouldn't dislike it."

He nodded slowly.

"Not that you have to. I'm not ... I wouldn't _order_ you to do it, or anything. I'm just saying, it would be nice for you to use my first name. Well, not nice, as in "nice", but it would be ... tolerable." She looked off to the side, wondering where she'd started out with that thought.

"Do you ever stop babbling?" he asked her.

"Not so much," she replied easily, allowing the smallest of smiles to tug at her lips.

"Have you ever tried?" he wondered.

She shrugged. "I'm a talker. I've never really found a good enough reason to stop talking, unless I'm singing."

Puck let himself get sucked into the moment, figuring if she was going to smack him for it, he might as well get it over with. Otherwise he'd spend the next who knows how long pining away like some cheesy, romance novel character, and Noah Puckerman was no cheesy, romance novel character. He probably shouldn't have asked her to dance ... he couldn't resist though.

No more than he could now resist the opportunity to give her a good enough reason to stop chattering on.

He tightened his grip on her waist, wetting his lips with a swift swipe of his tongue, and he watched her eyes dart to his lips before shooting back up to his eyes.

He wondered for a moment if there was a chance that she would let him kiss her. Just once. That would probably be enough to get her out of his head.

He dipped his head, breathing in as even of breaths as he could, growing ever closer to her tantalizingly parted lips.

She closed her eyes, pushing all thought out of her head and just letting her feel. She could feel his breath on her mouth, and while she could smell the beer he'd had, there was something else behind it ... something minty, perhaps. Either way, the smells meshed together in an altogether not-unpleasant way, and she found herself leaning in for more.

The front door banged open, and Owen walked in, clutching something in his hand.

"I hope we're not interrupting."

................................................................................................................................................................................

_End of chapter thirteen. _

_Hehe. _

_I hope you guys liked it. Your reviews have been so flattering and helpful. _

_Don't be shy about leaving some more feedback, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...!_


	14. Chapter 14

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Fourteen._

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: Wow ... that is the best way to wake up. Looking in my email to find 32! reviews on my latest chapter! Wow! You guys make my whole day. _

_I know, I'm evil ... but I didn't want them to kiss *just* yet. Maybe soon ... _

_I know a couple of you thought it was his hair that he was holding ... while that would be hilarious to write or read, I wanted him to be holding a "weapon" of sorts. Not a gun or knife or anything. Nothing excessively violent. Though it would definitely fit my idea of Owen's character. _

_Anyway ... let's get on with the story, shall we? _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback!_

* * *

Murmurs rang through the mass of people in Finn's living room, though there were a few that were more on-edge than others.

"Owen, what are you doing here?" Rachel asked, turning slightly away from Puck, not really noticing that his hand remained on her hip.

Owen glared at the left tackle before looking at Rachel.

"They have this coming Rachel ... the things they did. You wouldn't understand," he told her.

Rachel flicked her eyes down to his hand.

"Is that an ... egg?" she asked him.

He nodded.

"Well, what exactly are you planning to do with it?"

He smirked. "Well, unless your boys come outside in the next minute, we'll be redecorating this lovely house from the inside-out."

Rachel opened her mouth to speak, but Puck beat her to it. "Back off, Baldy, before you get your ass kicked."

Rachel looked at him curiously, but then noticed Owen was wearing a toque on his head. "What's wrong with you head?" she asked him.

She could hear Kurt chuckling from across the room.

His eyes filled with anger, glaring up at Puckerman. "He took my hair."

She furrowed her brow. "How?"

Owen slid off the toque. "That's how."

Rachel's eyes widened, and she clapped her hand to her mouth. He was, in fact, bald. Mostly. Some parts of his head were red and swollen, and looked as though they may have bled, whereas other parts had small tufts of hair clinging to hope that they would be left alone.

"And that's not all, Rachel," he continued, seeing that she was clearly horrified at what Puckerman had done. "He snuck into my room and ... put some kind of itchy stuff in my shorts. It's so painful," he added with puppy dog eyes.

Rachel closed her eyes and turned to face Puck, her hand still over her mouth.

Puck felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, knowing that she would either freak out on him, or never speak to him again. He dropped his hand from her hip, standing awkwardly.

And then her body started shaking.

"Are you ... crying?" he asked her.

She shook her head.

He was confused for a moment, and then an almost impossible thought struck him. "Are you ... Berry, are you laughing?"

It was hard to tell, because her hand covered her mouth, and her hair concealed mostly the rest of her face, but he heard a choked-off whimper escape her lips, followed by the faintest hint of a snort, and his question was answered.

Puck smirked, patting her back lightly. She was laughing. She knew what he'd done - mostly - to her ex-boyfriend, and she was laughing. She thought it was funny.

"What the hell?" Owen demanded. "How can think this is funny, Rachel? Don't you understand what he did to me?"

She struggled to get herself under control, but when she turned to look at him again, and saw those tiny bits of hair sticking out, she spurted once more with laughter.

"I'm sorry!" she stated between gulps of air and snickers. "I really am, but it's just ... so stupid. You boys are so ... I mean, really?"

Owen gritted his teeth, holding up the egg in his hand. Without a second thought, he chucked it at the left tackle, hitting him in the side of the head.

Puck growled as the yoke ran down his face, then charged at the Oaklander.

And so it started, both teams rushing outside to attack each other.

Rachel thought about calling the police, but then Finn would have to explain why he was having a party when his mother way away, and Puck and Kurt would probably be arrested for trespassing. Running inside, she grabbed her purse out of the closet.

The girls hung back, mostly rooting for the McKinley guys to beat up the Oaklanders, except for Mercedes, who eagerly threw herself into the madness, jumping on guys and ripping the eggs out of their hands, only to crack them down on them a second later.

Puck threw Owen onto the ground, glad for the opportunity to finally beat up the smug douche.

Owen came back swinging, cracking Puck across the jaw.

Puck responded in kind, then punched him in the gut, his superior "guns" coming in handy.

Owen fought dirty, aiming a kick at Puck's ... well, a place where no man should be kicked ... and Puck doubled over.

Owen smirked, taking the chance and kicked Puck in the head.

Puck fell back, his head throbbing, and he tasted blood. Must have split his lip. Or his eyebrow. Or both.

Owen came at him again, and Puck shot his foot up, kicking him into a nearby car.

The wide receiver cried out in pain. Puck was getting up when he started towards him again. He welcomed the cocky attack, getting ready to sucker-punch him in the jaw when a brown-haired figured dressed in black got in his way.

He was about to tell Rachel to move when he heard Owen scream - yes, scream - in pain.

He glanced around Rachel to see she'd sprayed him in both eyes with what looked to be pepper spray.

Owen scrambled, pushing her aside in anger and running to where he thought Puck would be.

Puck saw Rachel fall, and his skin grew hot with anger.

He moved to the side, tripping Owen, and then when he fell to the ground, Puck knocked him out with a single punch.

He dropped the Oaklander, glancing back at Rachel who was slowly getting up.

"You okay?" he asked her.

She took in his bloody appearance and ushered him back inside, leaving Mercedes and the football team to take care of the rest of them. It really was quite a sight.

She took him into the kitchen, patting a stool and telling him to sit on it. He did as he was told, holding back a hiss at the contact, still tender from where Owen had kicked him.

She searched around in the freezer for ice, wetting a cloth to clean the blood off his face.

"So ... you're not mad?" he asked her.

Rachel sighed. "I wouldn't go that far ... but I'm not going to penalize you for getting back at him. He did mess up your truck."

Puck looked down for a moment. "Well ... I kinda messed his up first."

"I know."

He met her eyes again. "You know? But you told him ... I thought you thought it was an accident?"

Rachel rolled her eyes. "I'm no stranger to competition. I grew up in a very competetive enviroment. I figured there would be some clashing when you guys found out he was from Oakland. And no one seemed to be getting hurt, so I just ignored it. Boys will be boys. But this ... he came here to hurt you."

She cleaned the blood away as gently as she could.

"Yeah, well ... I totally would have beat him if you hadn't stepped in," he commented.

"You did beat him," she reminded him.

He nodded, but then stopped when she held his head still with her hand on his jaw. "I meant, I would have done it sooner."

"I'm sure you would have," she told him, placing an ice cube on his eyebrow.

"That's really cold, you know," he told her.

"And it will stop it from swelling. You should do the same thing to your lip."

He plucked an ice cube from her hand, rubbing it across his lip before sliding it into his mouth to suck on.

Rachel blinked, stepping away.

"I should probably go make sure Mercedes is okay," she told him.

He nodded as she walked away, but then after a second followed her, dropping the ice from his eye.

"Berry ... Rachel, wait," he spoke, coming up behind her.

"What?" she asked softly, pleasantly surprised that he'd used her first name.

He took a breath, but then saw the Cheerios making their way back into the house, and lost his nerve.

"Thanks. For this, I mean."

She nodded. "No problem."

Quinn watched the interaction with a frown.

* * *

Rehearsal the next day was weird. Mr Shuester wanted to know why Puck, Finn, Mike and Matt were all bruised up, and why they were all watching Mercedes with amazed eyes.

No one said anything.

"Alright, well, we're going to try a few new songs today. So, I'm gonna pair you up. Finn and Quinn, here's your song." He handed them a piece of paper. "Artie, Tina, Matt, Britney, this is yours. Santana and Mike, here's yours. Mercedes and Kurt," he passed them a paper with their music. He turned to Rachel. "And you and Puck will be doing this song."

She nodded, accepting the paper and reading it over.

She found it odd that he had assigned them another love song, but didn't say anything, passing the paper to Puck.

His eye twitched, but other than that, he gave no reaction that he had a problem with it.

"Alright, we're gonna do another run-through of "Don't Stop Believing", and then you guys can get started on your songs,' Mr Shuester told them.

* * *

"Thanks again for that, Mr Shue," Quinn told him.

He paused. "I usually frown upon interfering with student's personal lives, but after their performance of "Something to Talk About" ... I think you might actually have a good idea. And their voices blend really well together." He glanced down at the blonde cheerleader. "I'm really impressed with you, Quinn. Going out of your way to help out another person ... two other people, really. You've really grown."

She smiled her thanks, making her way out of the room to find Finn.

Will watched her leave, deciding to pay a visit to Emma to tell her the latest happenings of the glee club. She was such a breath of fresh air, always listened to him when he talked. He smiled, making his way to the guidance counsellor's office.

* * *

_End of chapter fourteen. _

_Hope you liked it. I know the egg thing wasn't an intricate as hair in a bag, but it seemed kind of fitting, after all the times that Rachel got her house egged. _

_Hopefully Quinn's plan is becoming more clear. _

_Reviews are appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


	15. Chapter 15

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Fifteen_

_..._

_Disclaimer: See Ch. 1_

_..._

_A/N: Thanks for the amazing reviews! I just can't get enough of you guys, or this story! I'm so happy you guys liked the last chapter. I'm trying to come up with more good ideas so that I won't have to end this story, but I think I'm done with the Owen side of this, at least until they play against them again. I'll see how it goes. _

_I will be doing a "spin-off", for the chapter where he was in her room the first time, and instead of him leaving ... he stays! Stuff happens ... hehe. I'm such a nerd. _

_Side-Note: I watched a video last night, a Q&A with the cast of Glee, and one of the questions was "how are you like or unlike your character", and when it came to Mark Salling, he said "On the show, I'm a bad boy. But in real life ... I'm the worst boy." Yeah ... I was alone when I was watching that, and I almost had to excuse myself. So hot! _

_Anywhoo ... here's the next chapter. I hope you like it. I went back and forth on the song, but I think it'll work out in the end. Hopefully. _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback!_

* * *

Puck hated this song for one reason: he could relate to it. And what was worse, the person which he related it to was standing next to him, waiting to do a run-through of the lyrics.

He sighed, opening his mouth to sing.

"_I wasn't jealous before we met. _

_Now every man that I see is a potential threat. _

_And I'm possessive, it isn't nice. _

_You've heard me saying that smoking was my only vice._

_But now it isn't true. _

_Now everything is new. _

_And all I've learned,_

_Has overturned. _

_I beg of you ..."_

Rachel came in, "Don't go wasting your emotion. Lay all your love on me."

Yep, he hated this song.

* * *

Mr Shuester informed them that they would be presenting the best of the songs at the talent show two weeks from then, so of course Rachel was even more determined for their number to be spectacular.

Not that he minded ... it meant he got to spend more time with her.

The hard part would be keeping his hands to himself.

He scolded himself internally, having never been so hung up on a girl in his life. What was it about Rachel Berry that made him act and feel this way.

It didn't help that he was spending most of his waking moments with her, or near enough to her that he could always _feel_ her. Between driving her to school in the morning, seeing her at school in that damn outfit, glee, practicing after-hours for their duet, and now with her being a Cheerio ... when was he supposed to catch a break?

He hadn't even looked twice at a cougar in ages.

To say the least, he was feeling a little ... tense.

Finn came up beside him at the water table.

"Hey, man. You feeling alright?" his friend asked him.

"I'm fine. Why?"

"You just seem kind of out of it lately," Finn explained. "You got something on your mind?"

Puck's eyes flickered involuntarily to where the Cheerios were practicing dismounts.

"Nope," he answered. "Just ... didn't get much sleep last night."

Finn nodded. "Well, maybe Rachel will cut you some slack tonight. You're going over to her place to work on your song for glee, right?"

Puck groaned. "Don't remind me."

Finn looked between the two in confusion. "I thought you guys were getting along? Quinn won't stop talking about it."

Puck backstepped, "No, we are. She's just ... a perfectionist. She'll probably expect me to give 100% tonight, and I'm just ... drained." He trailed off, thinking of the so many ways that statement was dirty.

He thought about asking Finn if he knew that her bedroom was sound-proof, but he decided against it.

_It's gonna be a long day_, he thought to himself, sliding his helmet back on to return to the scrimage.

* * *

Rachel had no idea how she was going to get through the evening. Every time she'd looked at Puck that day, her heart had skipped a beat, and her knees had thrown in a little wobble. It was driving her insane.

Now she was sorting through her closet, trying to decide what to wear.

She felt like a girl. Not like the kind of girl that she usually felt like, but like on of those girls who can't stop thinking about cute boys, and spent hours agonizing over the perfect outfit, wondering which one the guy of their dreams would like best.

She rolled her eyes, finally finding a suitable skirt, but continued flipping for a shirt that would go well with it.

Puck knocked on the front door, checking his watch.

_Dammit, five minutes early._

But, he didn't have the chance to leave and come back late, because a second later one of her dads opened the door.

"Hello, you must be Noah," he commented, opening the door for him to step inside.

Puck nodded, deciding not to correct the older man.

"Rachel's upstairs. Have you already eaten?"

Puck nodded again.

"Well, just let us know if you need a snack or anything."

Puck said he would, making his way up the stairs. The door was open a crack, so he walked in, setting his guitar by the bed. He heard sounds coming from Rachel's closet, so he turned to let her know he was there, and froze.

"Oh, hell," he muttered accidentally, and Rachel spun around at the sound, not helping the situation at all.

She was standing before him with her hair pulled up off her neck, a pink, plaid skirt, and black bra that left very little to the imagination.

"What are you - you're - you're early!" she sputtered, attempting to cover herself.

He shot his eyes to the floor, feeling himself heat up. "I'm sorry! You're dad said I could come up," he told her honestly.

"Would you just ... turn around?" she pleaded.

He complied, closing his eyes and burning the image into his mind. He heard her fumble around in the closet, and a few seconds later, there was only silence.

"Can I turn around now?" he asked her slowly.

"I suppose," she informed him.

He took a deep breath, turning around to see she'd thrown on a simple, black t-shirt. He gulped. In his mind's eye, he could still see what she looked like underneath.

She walked over to the door, closing it and geting her "Mamma Mia!" cd off of her dresser and avoiding his eyes. "I think we should work on choreography first, and then we can add in the lyrics later," she suggested.

He nodded in agreement. "Works for me."

* * *

Rachel was able to force the embarrassment out of her mind, focusing solely on the steps they were working out. Puck's verse was first this time, so she gave him some leeway when he disputed some of the steps. She restrained herself, telling herself to be a team player.

For his part, Puck was barely able to control himself. Every time she moved, every time she stepped next to him ... every time she turned her back to him, and he was an inch away from the back of her neck ... it was all he could do not to reach out and kiss and nibble that delicious looking skin.

So, instead, he found himself arguing with her. Trying to push her away. He was damaged, he was no good ... even if by some miracle she could have any kind of feelings for her ... he would just ruin her. He would look, but he wouldn't touch. Figuratively speaking. The routine called for some level of touching. So, of course, he would allow himself to enjoy those moments. But the second the song was over, he'd step away, and she would turn back to her notes, scratching down new ideas, or copying out what they'd just created.

After an hour, she called for a break and they went down to the kitchen to get drinks.

"Hey, Sweetie," her dads greeted.

"Hey," she replied, opening the door to the fridge.

"How's the song coming?" the taller of the two asked.

Puck shrugged. "Good."

"That's good," her other dad said. "You two want anything to eat?"

Rachel shook her head. "No thanks. We're just getting some drinks to keep our vocal chords hydrated."

"Alright then," the first dad said. "Have fun."

"We will, Daddy," she commented, leading Puck back upstairs with her.

Puck spoke to her when she closed the bedroom door. "Why do they keep trying to stuff me with food?"

She shrugged. "It's what they do." She took a swig. "Are you ready to start on the lyrics?"

He nodded. "Sure." _Great. Now I have to sing to her about how she's turned my whole life upside down. _

"Do you want to do it with or without the music in the background?"

He forced his mind to immediately think dirty. It wasn't easy.

"Um, with, I guess."

She turned on the song without the words, standing across the room from him.

She cued him to let him know when his part would come up.

"_I wasn't jealous before we met. Now every man that I see is a potential threat._" He groaned internally at the truth behind that. "_And I'm possessive, it isn't nice._" He remembered his mantra: Look, don't touch. "_You've heard me saying that smoking was my only vice. But now it isn't true. Now everything is new. And I'll I've learned, has overturned. I beg of you ..._"

Her part came in, and he was relieved, because he felt as though his voice might start to waver. While she sang, he tried to get a hold of himself, and force away the images his mind created of what she might be wearing under her skirt.

"Puck?"

He quickly brought his eyes up from where they had wandered down.

"It's your verse," she reminded him.

"Oh, sorry," he apologized, blinking a few times.

"Do you need to go over the words more?" she suggested.

He shook his head, rubbing a hand over his mohawk. "No, it's okay, let's just start again."

_Long, long night._

* * *

_End of chapter fifteen. _

_Just an extra disclaimer: I don't own, ABBA, Mamma Mia!, or anything related to these songs. I'm going to be using some more Mamma Mia! songs for the other pairs, I just have to decide which ones. _

_Hope you guys liked this chapter. I know you're getting antsy for a kiss, so I won't keep you holding out for it much longer!_

_Reviews are appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


	16. Chapter 16

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Sixteen. _

_..._

_Disclaimer: Neither Glee, nor Mamma Mia! are mine. _

_..._

_A/N: Once again, thanks for all the great reviews, you guys are fantastic. You make me wanna never stop writing. _

_I'm happy you guys are still as hooked on this story as I am. Considering at this moment, I'm supposed to be researching the Effects Of Secondhand Smoke on Children, but instead I'm writing this. Ah well, tomorrow's another day. ... And when tomorrow comes, I'll say the same thing. (It's good that I'm consistent) _

_Alrighty-roo ... let's get on with it, shall we? _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback!_

* * *

Puck was fumbling ... a lot. And Rachel was growing more and more annoyed. It was like he wasn't even trying.

He wouldn't make eye contact, he _said_ the words more than he sang them, and he wasn't putting any emotion into it at all. Nothing like their last duet.

"What's wrong with you?" she asked him, setting her paper down.

"What?" Puck asked, distracted. "Nothing."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "Something is. It's like you're somewhere else right now, and it's really quite bothersome when you aren't putting any effort into it at all."

Puck felt his anger rising back. She was the entire reason he was acting so weird, and now she was getting all pissy at him.

"I'm sorry, but not everyone can be as perfect as you," he told her.

Rachel scoffed. "I'm not asking you to be perfect, but a modicum of effort would be nice."

He practically growled, his hormones were raging, and his body was so tensed up from the sheer amount of self-control he'd been exercising, and finally he dropped his sheet of paper onto the bed.

"Fine. Start it up again," he stated, meeting her eyes. She wanted effort ... he'd show her effort.

Rachel accepted the challenge, pressing play with the remote in her hand. When she turned back around to face him, he was much closer than before. She took a step back in surprise, and he began singing.

After the first couple of lines, he began walking around her, something they had scripted, but she was momentarily captivated by him, and forgot to turn with him.

He didn't mind, enjoying prowling around her and eyeing her when she couldn't see him.

He came back around to face her, singing the end of his verse.

She took the cue, singing in a flawless voice, "Don't go wasting your emotion. Lay all your love on me."

He stepped back towards her while she sang, momentarily throwing her off before allowing him to "chase" her, realizing he was doing more of his improvising. She let him, as it worked out so well the last time. Even though her heart was pounding furiously in her chest, and she could feel her pulse in every part of her body while she sang to him.

He sang the next chorus, stepping dangerously close to her before spinning her around so that her back was pressed against his front.

She took a steadying breath, preparing herself for her next lines. She pulled away after the bit about love affairs, finishing her lines while gazing at him. He continued, singing back to her while his eyes practically undressed her where she stood.

Finally, their lines came together, and he collided with her again, this time walking her around the room with him. He held his hand splayed across her lower back, his pinky finger just a little too low, but she didn't have the strength to move it, let alone tell him to, as all of her energy was being put into not melting in his arms.

Rachel hated how hard she had to work to _not_ melt in his arms.

They finished, and the music faded out.

They were breathing fast, but not because of any extra physical exertion. He still had his arms around her, she had her hands on his chest, and neither one of them had moved.

"Better?" he taunted, feeling anxious right down to his bones.

She blinked up at him, shivers running up and down her spine. It was all she could do to nod.

He registered with shock that fact that she was actually speechless. He, Noah Puckerman, had shut her up. Forgetting his mantra, forgetting how wrong he was for her, forgetting that she would probably slap him and have him thrown out of her house, he threw caution to the wind and leaned down, pressing his lips onto hers.

She gasped, but didn't pull away. He figured she was probably too shocked to react at first. He left his eyes open, gazing into hers, and his lips twitched slightly against hers, but he didn't pull back.

It felt like minutes, or longer, that he waited. He began to pull back, thinking maybe he'd scared her into a catatonic state, when her eyes drifted closed, and she returned the pressure.

He thanked his lucky stars, but then the intensity of the song, and the anger he'd felt before came rushing back, and he tightened his arms around her, pulling her tight against his chest.

She slid her hands slowly up his chest until they reached his neck, playing with the strip of hair along his scalp. It was one of the most erotic sensations he'd ever experienced.

Rachel couldn't believe that Noah Puckerman was kissing her. She couldn't believe that she was in her room with a gorgeous boy that made her heart swoon, and he was kissing her.

He dragged one hand from her back up to the back of her neck, tickling the skin lightly as he angled her head to kiss her better.

She felt his tongue against her lower lip, and she hesitantly opened her mouth for him. She kissed Owen before. Which wasn't something she particularly wanted to be thinking about at the moment, but it was necessary, for she couldn't help compare the two. Owen was sloppy, and all over the place, and always went either too fast or too slow for her. But Puck ... Puck was the perfect combination of speed and grace. It was a very heady feeling to be kissed by him.

He flicked his tongue against her top teeth before massaging her tongue with his, making her moan into his mouth.

Puck smirked into his kisses, feeling her chest rise and fall against him as she panted through her nose.

He pulled back, causing her to whimper, only to trail soft kisses down her neck, nibbling at the tender skin. She hugged him even tighter, mashing their bodies together and making him groan in response. He wondered if she was aware of the things she did to him.

He brought himself back to her mouth for another deep kiss before pulling back, awaiting her reaction.

A few seconds later she blinked her eyes open, half-convinced that she'd been dreaming. But there he was, and he was smiling down at her, almost reminding her of the Cheshire cat.

"You still in there?" he asked her, his words braver than he was at the moment.

She nodded slowly, suddenly realising that she was standing on the tips of her toes, pressed against his chest, with her hands clutching at his neck and hair.

"Sorry," she murmered, pulling back.

He shook his head. "Don't be."

She blushed, looking back up at him. "You kissed me," she stated.

He nodded. "I did. You kissed me back."

She smiled lightly. "I did."

Feeling daring, he dropped himself down on her bed, folding his arms behind his head. "It was a good kiss."

She hesitantly joined him, feeling weird standing by herself in the middle of her bedroom. "That it was."

He turned his head to look at her, catching her eyes. "Did you want to do that again ... or go back to practicing the song?"

* * *

She had chosen the song, but it was clearly to tease and torment him, he was sure of it. The new routine was much more physical than they had previously rehearsed, and she had no qualms about pressing herself against him, or trailing her fingers wickedly down his chest when she sang her lines.

It drove him to the point that when they reached the last repeat of the chorus, he hoisted her into his arms while they were singing, held up her up until they finished the last note, and then dropped her onto the bed, falling with her.

"I don't know about you, but I've had more than enough _singing_ for one night," he told her, allowing the arrogant youth in his to seep forward.

If she meant to protest, she never got the chance, because he immediately sealed her mouth with his.

She responded quicker and more eagerly this time, settling herself comfortably underneath him. It was like dying and going to heaven, and then getting to come back to Earth to do it all over again.

Their lips clashed together, sometimes teasing, sometimes bruising, most of the time battling back and forth as their tongues joined in.

He ran a hand down her side, feeling her shiver when he brushed across her sides, then squirm when he reached the bottom of her plaid skirt. He tickled the tip of her knee, causing her to jolt and roll them over.

She smiled down at him, lowering herself back down and kissing him.

He loved the feeling of her weight against his entire body, and felt that if he had to stay right there forever ... it really wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.

He was reminded once more that her room was sound-proof. Which made him wonder how far she was prepared to go.

"Rachel," he spoke gently, between kisses.

She pulled back a fraction, glancing down at him with lidded, dreamy eyes. "Pu - Noah?"

He had to close his eyes at the sound of her using his first name. Too hot.

"As much as I would love for us to keep going the way we're going, I don't want to ... I wouldn't want to put you in the position of having to tell me to stop," he admitted. Mostly because he didn't know if he would be able to stop once he really got going.

She nodded slowly, pulling back. He caught her elbow. "Not that I'm not enjoying this. 'Cause this is ... well, pretty fricken' great."

She rolled her eyes at him, scooching back so that she was sitting on his thighs, letting him sit up.

"I like you," she told him.

He nodded. "I definitely like you," he added.

"But I'm not ready to ... I've never," she felt stupid for saying it.

"No pressure," he assured her. "Kissing is great. Better than great."

He nipped her lips lightly, causing her to chuckle before kissing him softly.

He settled his hands on her lower back once more, fisting the material of her shirt.

Rachel dragged her nails across his back through his shirt, loving the feeling of his lips on hers, infuriated with herself that she'd waited this long for something this great.

She pulled back. "So are we ... I mean, would you consider us to be ... as to other people ..."

He answered the question for her, "Wanna be my girlfriend?"

She smiled, letting out a shaky breath. "Yes."

"Good," he replied, kissing her again. He didn't think he'd ever stop kissing her.

She pulled away after a few minutes, eyes glazed over and lips puffy. "We should really nail down this choreogrhapy. We've only got a few more days until we have to present it."

He reluctantly agreed, lifting her off of him with ease.

His shirt had ridden up slightly, and she caught herself staring at the exposed skin.

_It's gonna be a long night,_ she told herself, smoothing out her clothing.

* * *

"Do you think they're really singing up there?" Paul asked his partner as they sat in front of the television.

David smirked. "I wasn't born yesterday, Paullie," he replied, plopping a piece of popcorn into his lover's mouth.

Paul smiled. "Well, it's about time she met a nice boy ... did you see the size of his arms?"

David grinned excitedly. "Ginormous. Their kids will be gorgeous."

Paul chuckled at him, opening his mouth for another piece.

* * *

_End of chapter sixteen. _

_Finally, the kiss! And a little bit more ...! _

_Usually, I like to end a story with the couple finally getting together, but for this pairing (and this story) I'm willing (can't help myself) to write them while they're in their relationship. Especially since I want to write the talent show scene, and then at least another football game scene. We'll see how it goes. _

_Hope you liked it! I loved writing it! _

_Reviews are beyond appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...!_


	17. Chapter 17

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Seventeen._

_..._

_Disclaimer: See all chapters. _

_..._

_A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, you guys rock! _

_Yeah ... so it's like 2:07 am ... don't really have the oomph for a lengthy Author's Note. (Except: I'm going back to change the part about the Cheerios outfit, 'cause I realized they only wear the sleaves underneath when they're cold, so Rachel's name will be on the back of the top now) _

_So, without further ado, here's chapter seventeen. _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback!_

* * *

Rachel got used to the feeling of her hand in Puck's on the drive to school the next day. She had woken up almost convinced that she'd dreamt it all up, but then she'd slid next to him in the truck he'd leaned over, capturing her lips for a quick, "good morning" kiss.

He grinned when he saw she was wearing the Cheerios outfit without the sleeves underneath. The more of her he could see, the happier he was.

Not a dream.

She was ecstatic, to say the least.

She wondered how people at school would react. She was sure that Quinn and Britney would be happy, and she hoped her other glee friends would be happy.

They walked into the school hand-in-hand, not early for once because Rachel didn't have a Cheerios practice, and Puck suddenly didn't feel the need to charge around the football field. All eyes seemed glued to their joined hands, but that was all there was. No one really made a spectacle.

Until Britney, Quinn and Santana had walked up to them.

Quinn clutched Britney's hand, unable to contain her shriek of happiness. Britney squealed along with her, jumping up and down.

Santana rolled her eyes, leaving the four of them and making her way to her locker. No one missed her when she was gone.

"Someone needs to take a chill-pill," Puck commented, eyeing the girls like they were from another planet.

Quinn and Britney eventually managed to get a hold of their emotions, but couldn't stop their wild grins.

"So ... what's new?" Britney asked through her smile.

Rachel rolled her eyes, motioning to their joined hands.

Their grins grew ever wider.

The warning bell rang, and Rachel and Puck gladly said goodbye to Britney and Quinn, making their way to their separate lockers.

* * *

Finn stepped into stride beside Puck as they made their way to the cafeteria for lunch. "So, a little birdie told me that you're dating Rachel Berry now."

Puck felt a tug at the corner of his lips. "You and Quinn just have the cutest nicknames for each other."

Finn shoved him playfully. "Come on, man. Fess up. Just the other day you were dreading going to practice with her, and telling me she's a perfectionist, and now? What's the deal?"

Puck shrugged. "She's still a perfectionist."

Finn crinkled his nose. "I don't wanna know."

Puck snorted, spotting Rachel sitting with the other glee kids and making his way over.

He scooted his chair closer to hers, draping his arm over her shoulder while he ate his food one-handed.

She leaned into him after a moment's hesitation. "So, have you been interrogated as well?"

He jerked his head in Finn's direction. "You too?"

She nodded, glancing at Mercedes, Tina, Kurt, Britney and Quinn.

"Ouch," he commented, sipping his grape slushie, and then putting the cup in front of her so she could take a drink.

Rachel was struck with a thought. "So, who all was in on it?"

Britney and Quinn glanced nervously at each other. "In on what?" they asked at the same time.

Rachel explained, "The pranks. Against Owen and the Oaklanders. Who all was in on it?"

Puck, Finn, Mike, Matt and Kurt raised their hands, which didn't surprise her, but Britney raised hers as well.

She looked at Puck. "Her too?"

He shrugged nonchalantly. "She was a lookout."

Finn added, "There were some other guys from the football team as well."

Rachel shook her head, not doing a very good job of hiding her grin.

"So, you put a skunk in his car, egged his house, broke into his house ..."

"We also put Nair in his shampoo and itching powder in his underwear," Kurt added.

Rachel nodded in understanding, remembering the night of the party.

"Anything else?" she asked, looking up at Puck.

"I may or may not have hacked his email and sent a message to all of his contacts that he was in a Clown Porn Support Group, and needed sponsors," he confessed.

Rachel almost choked on the sandwich she'd been eating, falling into a fit of hysterical laughter.

He rubbed her back while she got her breathing back under control.

* * *

There was another football game that night, but by then, Rachel had the routine down, and wasn't as nervous as she had been the first time.

She cheered for Puck with a bright smile on her face, and actually understood more of what was going on. And as an added bonus, when Puck jogged over to the Cheerios, and kissed her after scoring a touchdown, she didn't slap him. Instead, she wrapped her arms around his neck and returned the kiss, drawing several whoots and catcalls from the audience in the bleachers behind them.

It ended up a tie, and Rachel waited for Puck outside the locker room for him to shower and gather his stuff.

She wasn't alone, as Quinn, Britney, and a few other Cheerios were waiting for their boyfriends as well. She still couldn't believe she was dating Noah Puckerman. That he was her boyfriend, and she was his girlfriend.

After the game they were practicing their routine some more, and she would be able to introduce him to her dads as more than just her partner in glee.

Santana made her way up to her. "I hope you don't get too used to the idea of you and Puck."

Rachel glanced up at her. "And why is that?"

Santana told her, "Because as soon as he gets into your pants, he'll be bored of you. That's just the way he is."

Rachel held her ground. "Says the girl who dumped him because of his credit rating? I'm really not interested in anything you have to say about Noah, Santana."

The taller girl glared at her before storming away.

Quinn looked over at her. "You know that's not true, right?"

Rachel shrugged, feeling doubt swim within her.

"Puck likes you, alot. Anyone who has eyes can see that," she told her. "Santana's just bitter. And wrong."

"Maybe," Rachel commented, and the conversation was interrupted but Puck and Finn making their way out of the locker room.

"Hey," he greeted, leaning down to kiss her.

She returned the pressure, but only for a moment before pulling away. He chalked it up to her eagerness to rehearse their song.

"Let's get out of here," he suggested, and she nodded, gripping his hand as they walked out of the school.

Back at her house, Puck could tell Rachel's head was elsewhere. She hadn't said much to her dads when they'd come in ... he'd almost expected her to make a big deal about him the second they were in the door.

"You okay?" he asked her, sitting down on the bed.

She nodded, but he didn't buy it.

"Come on, Berry, spill it," he coaxed.

She shrugged, before looking slowly at him. "Is this just about sex?"

"What?" he asked her.

"Sex? Are you only with me so that I'll sleep with you?"

He pursed his lips. "No."

She deflated.

"Who told you that?" he wanted to know, figuring something must have happened after the game.

"Santana," she answered.

Puck rolled his eyes. "Santana's a skanky bitch," he told her. "You can't trust anything she says."

"I guess," she said, settling against him.

He wished she had more faith in their relationship than that, even if it was only beginning. "Rachel ... you're not like other girls. You're different. And not in a bad way," he added when she pulled back. "I don't want anything - even sex - to ruin this."

"You mean that?" she asked him with soft eyes.

"Absolutely." He kissed the top of her head, smiling down at her, wondering when the hell he'd turned into such a girl, but at the moment, he didn't care.

"Good. 'Cause even though I'm not ready right now, I'd like to be ... soon. I just wanted to be sure that _when_ it does happen, you're not going to leave me."

He shook his head. "Come on, I fought this hard to get you. No way you're getting off that easy."

She grinned letting him kiss her deeply before turning the music back on.

* * *

_End of chapter seventeen. I think I'm going to try end this on an even 20 chapters. I know, you guys want more, I don't want this story to end either, but I don't want to drag it out forever, and I have some other ideas for Rachel/Puck fics that I want to write. _

_I'll try to make the next few chapters longer to make up for it. (Don't stone me, please?) _

_Reviews are highly appreciated, positive or negative. (And let me just say, I can't believe this story has 304 reviews on it. Utterly Amazing, you guys!_

_Until next time ...! _


	18. Chapter 18

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic. _

_Chapter Eighteen. _

_..._

_Disclaimer: See all chapters. _

_..._

_A/N: Thanks for the great reviews, you guys! _

_I hope you enjoy this chapter, and the songs I picked out. This story is so much fun to write, I can't believe it's almost over. _

_So, in this chapter, we finally get to see Rachel and Puck's performance of "Lay All Your Love On Me", and we see what songs the other groups were given. _

_Without a bunch of chatter from me, let's get on with it! _

_As alwayse, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

* * *

Finn and Quinn presented their song first, "S.O.S." from the musical Mamma Mia! Rachel was excited to see their interpretation of it, and was leaning forward in her seat while Puck tickled her palm with his thumb.

Mr Shuester cued the music, and Finn began singing to her while she had her back to him, looking very soulful.

"_Where are those happy days? _

_They seem so hard to find. _

_I try to reach for you, _

_But you have closed your mind._"

He stepped closer, but she appeared not to notice him, looking at something only she could see.

"_Whatever happened to our love?_" he sang.

"_I wish I understood. _

_It used to be so nice, _

_It used to be so good."_

He paused, stepping even closer to her and raising his voice, as though he were trying to get her attention. Rachel was enjoying the performance, even if Finn wasn't hitting as high of a note as the song called for.

"_So when you're near me,_

_Darling, can't you hear me? _

_S.O.S._

_The love you gave me, _

_Nothing else can save me. _

_S.O.S._"

He looked away, moving across the floor.

"_When you're gone, _

_How can I even try to go on? _

_When you're gone, _

_Though I try, how can I carry on?_"

Now it was Quinn's turn to glance at him, as though she were seeing him for the first time. He looked away with his eyes focused on the floor.

"You seem so far away,

Though you are standing near.

You made me feel alive,

But something died I fear.

I really tried to make it out," she sang, staring at him back.

"I wish I understood.

What happened to our love?

It used to be so good."

He turned towards her at this point, but looked over her shoulder, and she did the same, as though she were looking right through him. Rachel watching the performance in fascination. They were really getting into their roles.

"**So when you're near me,**

**Darling, can't you hear me? **

**S.O.S. **

**The love you gave me, **

**Nothing else can save me. **

**S.O.S. **

**When you're gone, **

**How can I even try to go on?"** they sang, moving closer to each other and finally looking into each other's eyes, before turning around so they're backs were pressed together.

"**When you're gone, **

**Though I try, how can I carry on?"**

They threw a small dance routine in, spinning each other about the room before pushing each other away and glancing about as though they were trying to find one another again.

"**So when you're near me, **

**Darling! Can't you hear me? **

**S.O.S. **

**And the love you gave me, **

**Nothing else can save me. **

**S.O.S. **

**When you're gone, **

**How can I even try to go on? **

**When you're gone, **

**Though I try how can I carry on?" **

They turned to look at each other, singing into each other's eyes.

"**When you're gone, **

**How can I even try to go on?" **

They finished, and then Finn placed a light kiss on her lips, making her smile.

The rest of them clapped happily for them, having enjoyed the performance.

Next up were Santana and Mike, singing "Our Last Summer." They did well, even though it was a little stiff.

After them came Mercedes and Kurt, who sang, "Gimme Gimme Gimme." It was a great performance, and had everyone giggling and applauding at the end of it.

Rachel even whooped along with the other Cheerio-glee members when they took a bow.

Next up went Artie, Matt, Tina and Britney, whose song was "Take a Chance on Me."

Finally, it was Rachel and Puck's turn, and she handed the band their sheets of music before getting into place with Puck.

The music started up, and right away Puck turned on Rachel, singing to her with passion.

"_I wasn't jealous before we met,_" he sang honestly, backing her into the middle of the room slowly.

"_Now every man that I see is a potential threat. _

_And I'm possessive, it isn't nice._" He tugged her to him a moment before brushing her hair aside and walking around her.

"_You've heard me saying that smoking was my only vice. _

_But now it isn't true. _

_Now everything is new._"

He came to a stop in front of her, singing into her eyes.

"_And all I've learned, _

_Has overturned. _

_I beg of you ..." _

He grew dangerously close to her lips as he clipped off the last note, and she smiled before singing back, "Don't go wasting your emotion. Lay all your love on me."

She turned away from him, moving to the piano, but he followed her, pinning her there.

"It was like shooting a sitting duck," she sang, moving along the piano even though his hands kept her between the hard object and his body.

"A little small-talk,

A smile, and baby I was stuck," she continued earnestly.

The rest of their peers watched them with mounting interest, wondering if this performance was going to be as good as the last one.

"I still don't know what you've done with me," she sang, ducking under his arms and moving backwards.

"A grown-up woman should never fall so easily."

He wiggled his eyes suggestively, following her.

"I feel a kind of fear," she said next, gripping his shirt by his sides.

"When I don't have you near.

Unsatisfied,

I skip my pride.

I beg you dear!"

He placed his hands over hers, bringing them up and linking their fingers together.

"_Don't go wasting your emotion, _

_Lay all your love on me. _

_Don't go sharing your devotion," _he pleaded.

"_Lay all your love on me." _

She blinked her assurance in a look that was meant just for him, before stepping away to begin her next part.

"I've had a few little love affairs.

They didn't last very long and they've been pretty scarce."

He came in beside her.

"_I used to think that was sensible. _

_It makes the truth even more incomprehensible." _He flicked his eyes to Finn's to see the confusion on his face at the use of such a long word, and nearly snickered.

He turned back to Rachel, singing with her, "**'Cause everything is new. **

**And everything is you. **

**And all I've learned, **

**Has overturned. **

**What can I do? **

**Don't go wasting your emotion, **

**Lay all your love on me. **

**Don't go sharing your devotion, **

**Lay all your love on me!" **

As rehearsed a few times, he spun her around him before sending her away a few feet, she ran back to him and he caught her, lifting her above his head and slowly turning her.

She sang, her voice unwavering even though he could see the vast amount of emotions in her eyes.

"Don't go wasting your emotion,

Lay all your love on me."

He set her down, drawing her into his arms.

"**Don't go sharing your devotion, **

**Lay all your love on me." **

He ghosted a kiss on the tip of her ear, before turning back to the shocked-looking audience and taking a bow.

Everyone clapped and whooped and whooted, and even Mr Shuester had to close his mouth, which had previously been hanging wide open.

"That was amazing," he congratulated them, sliding between them and putting a hand on their shoulders. "I think we should put this to a vote," he told the club. "All in favor of doing Rachel and Puck's song at the talent show?"

Nearly every hand shot up.

Rachel smiled happily at Puck, flattered that they'd loved their performance so much.

"Majority wins," Mr Shuester laughed, clapping Puck and Rachel on the back. "Let's get to work."

* * *

Rachel fell back onto her bed, Puck joining her shortly. They'd just gotten back from school, and were completely spent. Working on the new steps had been fun, but taxing.

"We were awesome," Rachel commented, turning on her side to look at Puck.

"Yep," he replied, moving his arm so she could rest her on it, wrapping it around her back.

He'd never been so content to just lay on a girl's bed, without sex being part of the equation.

"We make a pretty good pair, you and me," she noted, picking imaginary lint of his shirt.

He nodded, rubbing his hand on her back. "That we do."

"And I'm happy we're not moving too fast, you know? I wouldn't want to rush it and end up spoiling it."

"Me neither," he replied, turning his head to look at her.

She felt her heart-rate speed up, getting lost in his eyes. Such perfect eyes.

She turned and rolled slightly, ending up laying against his side so that she could kiss him. Kissing was good. It was safe. It was hot as hell, but it didn't have to go any further than that, right?

She felt her skin growing hotter as he sucked lightly on the pulse point on her neck, rubbing his hands up and down her back, underneath her shirt.

She shivered against him, tucking her leg over his as she moved against him. She felt as though if she stopped kissing him, she wouldn't be able to breathe.

He tried to place the exact moment when Rachel Berry had become so irresistible to him. Maybe it was when he saw her doing flips in that tight little outfit, and every time the skirt flipped up he'd been able to see her matching underwear. Maybe it was she pouted, and her eyes glistened, and it made his heart doing a weird flopping thing. Maybe it was when they'd first been paired up to sing together, and he'd been able to hear how well their voices meshed together.

Maybe it had been the first time he'd kissed her, and he'd been half-convinced she'd smack him across the face. Maybe it was when she'd seen what he'd done to her ex, and she had laughed, that cute little snort of a laugh.

He sighed into his kisses. Hell, it could have been the first time he'd ever laid eyes on her . Yes, she still made him want to light himself on fire, but now ... it was a different kind of fire altogether.

"You're amazing," he told her, sitting up on the bed so he could pull her into his lap and kiss her properly. She smiled, wrapping her arms around his neck and enjoying his ministrations.

She felt the same way. Noah Puckerman was beautiful and talented and she fit perfectly against him. She could feel herself sinking further and futher into his embrace, not caring when she ended and he began.

He was giving her goosebumps, and she gasped into his mouth.

She didn't even try to stop him when his hands pushed aside the flimsy material of her Cheerio skirt, burning a path up her thigh.

* * *

_End of chapter eighteen. So, will they or won't they? Who knows? ... Well, I do, but I'm not telling! _

_Stay tuned! _

_Hope you liked it, I know I loved writing it. _

_Reviews are appreciated, positive or negative. Thanks for the tips about the few errors I had in my other chapters, they have since been fixed. _

_Until next time ...! _


	19. Chapter 19

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic. _

_Chapter Nineteen. _

_..._

_Disclaimer: See all other chapters. _

_..._

_A/N: Thanks for such great feedback you guys, you're wonderful! _

_Only two more chapters left ... I'll be sad to see it go. _

_As I said, I'll be trying to make these chapters longer, but we'll see how it goes. _

_Hope you like it, I know I'll enjoy writing it. _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

* * *

His hands were like fire, causing her to moan and press against him even more, but when the tips of his fingers skimmed her underpants, she pulled back.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, panting heavily.

He shook his head. "Don't be. I know we made a deal. I'm not pressuring you." He leaned back with great effort. "Just got caught up in the moment."

She nodded, embarrassed. "Me too." She was quiet for a moment before she suggested, "Wanna watch a movie?"

He glanced at his watch. "I have to get home soon, I'm supposed to make dinner tonight. My mom only has the sitter for another half-hour."

"For your little sister?" she wondered. She'd seen them in the mall once.

He nodded. After a moment, he casually asked her, "You could come, you know. If you wanted."

She let a small smile grace her features. "Come to dinner, you mean?"

He nodded. "My sis would love it ... I wouldn't exactly hate it, either. Besides, my mom's been dying to know where I've been spending all my time."

Rachel nodded. "I supposed I could clear it with my dads."

He kissed her quickly, pulling them off the bed. She adjusted her skirt, but then reconsidered her outfit. "I should probably change."

He pouted. "But I love watching you move in that."

She chuckled a pillow at his head. "Wait for me downstairs," she told him, giving him a cross look.

He relented, peeking his head around the door once before making his way down the stairs.

He found her fathers sitting in the living room, playing a game of scrabble.

"Oh, hello there," David greeted, glancing up from the game.

"She kicked you out already?" Paul joked.

Puck brushed a hand over his mohawk. "No, she's just getting changed. I invited her over for dinner at my house, I hope that's okay?"

Paul and David nodded. "Sure. Just make sure to have her home at a reasonable time."

Puck nodded hurriedly. "Of course."

He rocked back on his heels, waiting for Rachel to be done. He could hear every tick the clock on the wall made.

He didn't really _do_ the whole "dad" thing. Fathers didn't typically like him.

"So, how did your duet go today?" Paul Berry asked him.

Puck looked back over at them, attempting to make small-talk with them. "Uh, it was good. We get to present it as a group at the talent show."

They both nodded excitedly.

"Oh, that's wonderful. Rachel was hoping you two would win that contest," David cooed.

Puck nodded. "Yeah ... it was cool."

He really hoped Rachel would hurry up.

His prayers were answered a minute later when she came bouncing down the stairs black skirt and a dark-blue top, complete with grey, knee-high socks and flat shoes.

"Dad, Daddy, is it okay if I go to Noah's for dinner tonight?" she asked them.

They both nodded. "Of course, Sweetheart. Have fun."

She thanked them, kissing them both of the cheek before exiting the house with Puck.

"She's already meeting his parents," David stated happily.

Paul nodded in agreement, laying down his word: match.

* * *

Puck opened the door to a mass of brown hair jumping into his arms.

"You're home!" Arianna squealed, hugging him tightly.

Rachel smiled at the sight, standing off to the side.

Puck ruffled his sister's hair, pulling her off of him.

The smaller girl noticed Rachel. "Who's that?"

Puck pulled Rachel closer. "This is Rachel. She's my girlfriend."

Arianna sized her up, giving the taller girl her best serious face. "You're not mean like than Satan girl, are you?"

Rachel snorted at that. "I hope not."

Puck rolled her eyes at the two, ushering them inside and closing the door.

Mary, the babysitter, spotted Puck. "I was just about to start dinner," she told him. "I wasn't sure when you'd be getting back."

He shook his head, digging in his wallet to hand her a few twenties. "It's okay. You can take off now."

She nodded, giving Rachel a friendly smile and hugging Arianna goodbye.

"See you next time," she said, and Arianna waved goodbye, pulling Rachel into the living to tell her all about her favorite movie.

Puck considered trying to rescue her from the tiny but forceful child, but decided he should get dinner started. Rachel could hold her own against the best of them.

Puck's mother came in almost an hour later, tired from work and in a huff.

"Noah!" she called out, shrugging her jacket off. "Please tell me you've already started dinner, I'm in no mood to cook tonight."

Rachel fidgeted in the living room with Arianna beside her.

"Hey, Mommy," Arianna greeted. "This is Rachel. She's Noah's girlfriend!"

The older woman looked at her in surprise, stepping forward. "Oh, hello. I wasn't aware we had company."

Rachel stepped forward to shake her hand. "Pu - Noah invited me over tonight, I hope that's alright."

His mother nodded. "It's fine." Puck came into the room. "A little notice would have been nice, though."

"Sorry," he told her. "Dinner's ready."

They moved into the dining room, Puck holding out Rachel's chair for her under his mother's watchful eye.

They only practiced the proper Jewish prayers on special occasions, so everyone began dishing their plates out.

As Rachel leaned forward to pass the pasta to Arianna, his mother noticed something sparkling around her neck.

"Rachel?"

Rachel paused, sitting back in her seat. "Yes?"

His mother wasn't one for tact. "Are you Jewish?"

Rachel glanced at Puck before answering. "Yes." She could hear Puck groan beside her. "Why?"

Puck's mother smiled. "No reason." Even though she was practically dancing with excitement. Finally, her son had met a nice, Jewish girl.

They continued the meal, and Puck's mother asked her everything from her favorite subject in school, to what her plans were for the future.

Rachel had always enjoyed talking about her future stardom, so it wasn't very awkward for her until she started asking her how many children she planned to have, and if she intended to keep her own name when she got married.

Puck put a quick end to the conversation, asking Arianna how her day went.

When supper was over, Puck quickly cleared off the table, taking Rachel up to his room to escape from her mother's glances, undoubtedly sizing her in her mind for a wedding dress.

"Well ... that was an experience," Rachel commented, glancing about her new surroundings.

"Sorry about that," Puck told her. "She's kind of wacky."

Rachel shrugged. "It's nice that she cares so much about you."

Puck nodded. "Sure."

She sank down carefully onto his bed, laughing after a moment.

"What's so funny?" he wondered, jumping on the bed beside her and making her body bounce a little.

"I had pictured in my mind, your bed being a water-bed," she told him.

He chuckled at that. "Well, look who suddenly has a kinky side."

She smacked him arm playfully, and when he pretended to be hurt, she tenderly kissed the spot, causing that familiar fire to run through him.

"You give me bad thoughts, Rachel Berry," he whispered, before catching her lips in a searing kiss.

* * *

Rachel went out of town with her dads that weekend, she was competing in a vocal competition two town's over, and Puck was spending the night at weekend at Finn's to hang out and catch up.

When Monday rolled around, Rachel had those familiar flutters in her stomach. She'd been worried that she would see Owen at the competition, but his sister hadn't been there. She'd been relieved. She really didn't want a confrontation with him.

Now, she was bouncing on her heels, waiting for Puck to arrive to pick her up for school.

He was a few minutes late, but he eventually pulled up in front of her house, leaning over to open the door for her.

"Sorry I'm late," he told her. "Arianna's got the flu, I almost had to stay home with her."

Rachel nodded in understanding. "Is she okay?"

Puck nodded back. "She'll be fine. Lots of bed rest, soup, and TV. She's living it up back at home."

Rachel chuckled at that, buckling her seatbelt.

"How was your weekend?" she asked him as he drove off.

"It was good," Puck replied. "We mostly played video games and talked smack at each other."

She laughed at the joke, picturing them dissing each other while killing zombies side-by-side.

"How about? How was the competition?"

She pulled her 1st Place ribbon out of her purse. "It was great."

"Cool," he said. "Good job."

"Thanks."

Rachel leaned against him while he drove, wondering how she could have missed him so much in the little time she'd been gone. She was totally and completely falling for him.

Puck broached a tense subject with her, "So, we play Oakland again tomorrow."

She looked up at him. "Oh."

"Yeah. Should be interesting."

Rachel nodded. "I suppose it would pointless to ask you not to get hurt?"

He nodded. "What fun is that?"

Rachel rolled her eyes, but internally was nervous. The last time they'd seen Owen, he'd been disheveled and pissed enough to outright attack Puck. She didn't want to know what would happen when they stood on opposite sides of a line, in a game where hitting was kind of mandatory.

* * *

At glee rehearsal that afternoon, Mr Shuester made a suggestion to the class.

"What do you guys think about doing two songs in a row for the talent show?"

They waited for him to continue.

"I think that you should follow up "Lay All Your Love On Me", with "Waterloo"," he explained. "I think it would make a great performance, and then more people get a chance at doing solos.

Everyone eyes turned to Rachel at this, as though they thought she would have a problem sharing the spotlight.

"Mr Shue, I think that's a great idea," she declared, surprising everyone, even Puck. "In fact, could I make a suggestion for the opening to the song?"

He nodded, happy that she wasn't throwing a diva fit, even though he suspected she was going to say herself as the lead.

"I think it would be good it Quinn, Britney and Santana sang the opener, as their voices mesh really well together, and then we could bring in sets of twos to sing pieces of the verses, and then bring everyone in the do each chorus," she suggested.

Mr Shuester ... and just about everyone in the class ... looked at her in surprise.

"What? You don't like the idea?" she asked them.

Many of them were speechless. Where was the spotlight-hogging control-freak they'd come to know so well?

"No, it sounds great, Rachel," Mr Shuester told her. "That's pretty much what I had in mind. Everyone else good with that?"

They all nodded.

"Great. Alright, let's get started," he motioned to Quinn, Britney and Santana. "Girls, front and center, let's run it from the top."

* * *

Rachel was on a high of no other kind when she came home from school that night. Perfect bliss. Everything was perfect.

She had glee club, cheerleading, and now Puck as well. She was happy. It was wonderful.

Her father's had noticed a change in her mood, and were happy to say that Noah was a big part of it.

She checked her MySpace page, and there wasn't a single nasty message left for her. There were even a few from Tina and Kurt that were sweet and kind.

She completed her evening routine, sat down to dinner with her dads, excersized her vocal chords, excercized the rest of her body, and then got ready for bed.

She hoped things went well tomorrow. She really wanted McKinley to beat Oakland tomorrow. More than she had last time. Last time, she would have settled for a tie, but now ... she wanted Oakland to get beaten so harshly, they'd walk away with their tails tucked between their legs ... if they had tails.

She wondered briefly if it was Puck, or the Cheerios that had made her so competetive when it came to football.

Sighing, she rolled over in her bed, deciding to take tomorrow however it came.

* * *

Puck rolled over on his bed, thinking about tomorrow. He was gonna play a kick-ass game, that was a no-brainer. He just hoped he could keep his focus long enough to play the game.

Between his starving labido, and his hatred for Owen ... it was going to be tough to keep his head in the game.

Not that he minded not having sex with Rachel. Everything they'd done so far was hot as hell. It made his skin crawl in a very good way when he thought about her perfect lips, or how smooth her skin was, or those tiny little gasps she made when he kissed her in just the right place.

That was the problem though ... every time he closed his eyes, every time he had a spare moment to think, she was on his mind. She was all he thought about, day and night. And even if he was thinking about something else, he always found some way of relating it to her.

Always.

He sighed, rolling over once more. Worrying about it tonight wouldn't change the outcome of the game tomorrow. Whatever happened would happen ... except he would definitely make a point of knocking Owen out at least once. Maybe twice.

* * *

_End of chapter nineteen. _

_Sorry, for those of you who were expecting a sex scene ... not yet. Maybe not even in this story, I might save it for the spin-off I'm doing of this story. I'll see ... _

_Next chapter: The game, and the talent show! _

_Hope you liked it, I know I loved writing it. _

_Until next time ...! _


	20. Chapter 20

_..._

_A Rachel/Puck fic._

_Chapter Twenty. _

_..._

_Disclaimer: See all previous chapters. _

_..._

_A/N: And for the last time: You guys are completely and utterly amazing! You've made me smile and laugh with all of your colorful and enthusiastic reviews. I wouldn't have been able to update this story so fast if you guys hadn't given me the encouragement and inspiration to do it. You rock! I only hope this ending is good enough for you! _

_It's sad to see this story go, it's been so much fun to write. But, I've already started my next story, and I plan on doing the spin-off for this story soon as well. _

_So, without much further babbling, here's the next and last chapter. I hope you enjoy it! _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

* * *

Rachel sat with Puck on the bleachers, dressed in her Cheerios outfit, but with the sleeves on as it was a slightly cooler night than the last game she'd been to. She wore glitter and pink lip-gloss to match the other girls, and stretched out her legs in front of her.

"It's gonna be a good game," she told him. "I can feel it."

He smirked. "Definitely."

"You should probably be warming up," she told him, fidgeting a little on his lap.

"Probably," he agreed.

She looked at him curiously. "Is there something that girlfriends usually do in these situations ... to bring their boyfriends luck? Not that you need luck, but if you thought it would be at all helpful, and if there was something that I should be doing, I would be more than happy to do it. I'm just not sure what it would -"

Puck put an end to her rambling with a hard kiss.

He held her to his body, wrapping her tightly in his arms until she sighed against him, and he knew she'd worked out her stress.

He pulled back, keeping his face close to look her in the eye. "That's all the luck I need," he told her.

She smiled, effectively silenced, but happy nonetheless.

"Whatever I can do to help," she finally mumbled out, kissing him once more.

He picked her up, setting her down slowly before ending the kiss. "Okay, now I really do have to go warm up."

She nodded. "Good luck. Have fun. Kick butt. All those things."

He rolled his eyes at her. "I think I'd prefer to kick _ass_, Berry."

She followed him down the bleachers until they reached the locker room, and she met up with the other Cheerios. They stuck their heads far enough in the locker room to shout out, "Whoo! Go McKinley!" before making their way to the field for their pre-game stretches.

As they got their muscles ready for a night of bouncing around and cheering, Rachel saw a few cars pull into the far side of the parking lot, along with a car that she recognized as Owen's.

_Let the games begin,_ she thought dramatically.

* * *

They had sufficiently riled up the crowd with their pre-game routine, and the first quarter had resulted in a 7-7 tie. She shook her pom-poms encouragingly at Puck where he sat on the bench, half-listening to Tanaka, half-staring at her and undressing her with his eyes.

She felt herself grow warm at the heat in his eyes, but she chuckled, waggling her finger at him discouragingly and pointing for him to pay attention. He did so grudgingly.

She allowed her eyes to flicker across the field to the other group of players, and found Owen staring at her as well, though with a much heavier expression on his face. Rage, perhaps, mixed with jealousy.

Rachel sighed. She knew that Puck could take care of himself, and she was really annoyed with Owen for thinking he still had a chance with her, but that didn't mean she wanted either of them getting hurt. Well ... she wouldn't mind if Owen got a little roughed up, but only enough to get it through his head that he was acting like a petulant child.

The game recommenced, and Rachel cheered on the McKinley boys.

The score went back and forth. Sometimes McKinley was ahead, sometimes the Oaklanders managed to scrape a touchdown in by the skin of their necks.

It was a very intense game. She'd never seen "her" guys play with such passion and purpose before. True, she'd only been to a handful of games, but still ... it was quite a sight to behold.

By the end of the second half, the score was 27 for McKinley and 29 for Oakland.

Thus far, Owen and Puck hadn't been in the position to "face off" against each other, as Owen was on the offensive line, as was Puck, but as they lined up for the beginning of the third quarter, Rachel saw him jog onto the field, on the defensive side.

She glanced at Quinn nervously. Puck was usually on the offensive line, but as he had the quickest feet and was one of the best tacklers on the team, Tanaka sometimes put him on the defensive side as well, if he felt they were falling behind.

Evidently, now was one of those times.

She dutifully cheered him on, but inside she was worrying. Even from the sidelines she could see the two boys eyeing each other maliciously.

The snap came, and the boys were off. Owen raced through the mob of players, charging down the field for a pass. Puck followed after him, his eyes on his target.

Owen caught the ball and kept running, Puck hot on his heels.

Rachel watched with tense concern and heightened interest as Puck advanced closer and closer. 10 yards away from the end-zone, Puck threw himself at Owen's middle, tackling him to the ground. He fumbled the ball, and Puck just barely managed to wrap his hands around it, drawing it to his body and holding it firm.

The crowd behind them erupted in hollers and cheers, and Rachel jumped up and down with them. She Owen get up and try to start a fight with Puck, but his teammates pulled him back.

For his part Puck didn't go after him, which made Rachel smile. While he'd obviously been itching to knock him down, he had restrained himself when it came to an all-out confrontation.

They play continued, and Puck remained on the field. She was impressed with his stamina. She felt a shiver run through herself at that thought, but forced herself to keep her focus on the game.

McKinley managed to score another two touchdowns in the third quarter, bringing the score up to 41-32.

Tanaka kept Puck on the defensive line while they were ahead, not wanting to give Oakland a chance to score. Puck held up his end, making like a wrecking ball for any player who had the ball.

Finally, the last couple minutes of the game were upon them, and Rachel was squealing like a girl. McKinley had never played such a great game, and she wanted them to win big.

The Cheerios started up a cheer, "Go-McKinley-Go! Go-McKinley-Go!" and the crowd behind them joined in, standing in their seats. A lot could happen in two minutes, but they were on fire.

The ball was intercepted, but the offending player was knocked down before he could make much headway. Unfortunately, he managed to hold onto the ball.

Puck made his way back onto the field with the defensive line, itching to let loose. He stared down Owen from where he stood, shifting on the balls of his feet.

He distinctly heard the ball hit the quarterback's outstretched hands, and he kept his eyes peeled for a runner.

As predicted, Owen took off, and Puck ran after him.

He chuckled as he realized that he actually had to slow down so that he wouldn't catch him too early.

As a result, the quarterback over-threw the ball. Puck slowed his pace as he watched the ball soar over their heads, but Owen had other ideas.

The wide receiver took a running dive at Puck, pushing him back.

Caught off-guard, Puck fell back a few steps. He quickly responded though, turning and throwing Owen off of him. Owen got back on his feet quickly, coming back for more.

Puck was only too happy to oblige the other player's death wish, and caught his head in the crook of his arm, knocking off his helmet as he threw him to the ground.

The clock ran out while they fought, and the other players on the field had joined in, jumping on each other and shoving back and forth.

The refs tried to split them apart, blowing their whistles and throwing flags around, but no one paid them any mind.

Puck shoved Owen back several feet before getting hit from behind by another player.

Rachel watched the scene before her in panic, not wanting Puck to get hurt. The game had ended, and McKinley had won, but it seemed no one on the field cared about that.

_Where's your pepper-spray when you need it, Rachel?_ she cursed herself, though she doubted it would make much of a difference at this point. Plus, she doubted Puck would enjoy it if she kept trying to "come to his rescue", especially when he didn't need it. That didn't stop her from worrying.

Between the refs, coaches and assistant coaches, they managed to pull the players off of each other and back to their benches.

Rachel was grateful for that ... another minute and she was sure the fans from either side would have joined in as well.

She made her way over to the bench where the guys were getting a "talking to" from Tanaka, but if you listened clearly, you could tell he was actually congratulating them discretely.

Tanaka finished his speech, leaving the players to leave the field on their own, and Rachel found her way through the crowd to Puck.

"You okay?" she asked him, concerned.

He nodded. "Of course."

He didn't look too worse for the wear, as he'd managed to keep his helmet on during the brawl, but he was clearly exhausted. He'd played a long, rough game, and came out on top.

"You played an amazing game tonight," she complimented, coming to a rest on his lap.

He placed an arm around her waist, holding her there.

"Well, I did have my good luck charm cheering me on," he told her, nipping at her lips lightly.

She laughed softly in response

She turned her head, watching Owen and the other Oaklanders leave the field. He paused when he saw her looking at him, and even through his blood he got a hopeful look on his face.

Rachel glared at him, rolling her eyes and turning to kiss Puck full on the mouth.

Owen left, limping and disheartened.

Rachel glanced up at Puck. "I don't know what I ever saw in him."

Puck nodded in agreement. "Neither do I, crazy lady."

Rachel snorted, kissing him once more in response.

* * *

_One week later ..._

"Okay, you guys are ready for this," Mr Shuester told them. "You're gonna do great. Big smiles, heads up, and rock the place!"

The glee kids laughed in response, even though they were all nervous. They were always uneasy about performing in front of the people they went to school with.

Mr Shuester made his way through the curtain to present them and list the two performances they would be doing.

Rachel grinned up at Puck. Out of everyone, she was easily the least nervous. Truthfully, the thought of performing with Puck set her heart on fire. She couldn't wait to be in his arms in front of everyone, to have him singing a love song from one of her favorite musicals to her.

The curtain opened, and everyone found their places on the stage.

Rachel slid her hand into Puck's getting ready to walk to the middle of the stage with him.

The music began, and he lead them forward, stopping to turn and face her.

"_I wasn't jealous before we met,_" he crooned, causing her to blink bashfully at him.

"_Now every man that I see is a potential threat. _

_And I'm possessive, it isn't nice."_

Rachel smirked at that, feeling her pulse to speed up. The things he did to her ...

"_You've heard me saying that smoking was my only vice. _

_But now it isn't true. _

_Now everything is new. _

_And all I've learned, _

_Has overturned. _

_I beg of you ..." _

The female glee members joined in with Rachel as she sang the chorus.

"_**Don't go wasting your emotion. **_

_**Lay all your love on me**_."

She allowed him to chase her, moving around the stage until her back was to the line of girls behind her, dancing lightly to the beat of the song.

She arched her back as she sang to him, taunting him with her eyes.

"It was like shooting a sitting duck."

"_**Sitting duck!**_"

"A little small talk,

A smile, and baby I was stuck."

"_**She was stuck!**_"

She walked towards him and he backed up with her, as rehearsed.

"I still don't know what you've done with me.

A grown-up woman should never fall so easily."

"_**Easily!"**_

She leaned into him, gazing into her eyes and putting real emotion into her words.

"I feel a kind of fear,

When I don't have you near."

She gripped his biceps, and he turned her quickly so her back was to him.

"Unsatisfied,

I skip my pride.

I beg you dear ..."

He sang the first part of the chorus, "_Don't go wasting your emotion. _

_Lay all your love on me." _

The boys joined in for the second part, layering their voices on top of Puck's.

"_**Don't go sharing your devotion. **_

_**Lay all your love on me." **_

The others began moving to the center of the stage, meeting their partners in the middle. Finn with Quinn, Matt with Britney, Mike with Santana, Artie with Tina, and Kurt with Mercedes.

They mimicked Rachel and Puck's movements, while giving them plenty of space, acting as both back-up dancers and vocals.

"I've had a few little love affairs," Rachel sang.

"They didn't last very long and they've been pretty scarce."

"_**Pretty scarce!"**_ the others sang.

"_I used to think that was sensible. _

_It makes the truth even more incomprehensible._"

Rachel and Puck sang the next verse together, turning in each other's arms while the others danced around them, and they faded into the middle.

"**'Cause everything is new. **

**And everything is you. **

**And all I've learned, **

**Has overturned. **

**What can I do?" **

They moved with the others, weaving in and out until they were back in front once more.

The boys sang to the girls, dipping them low while Rachel and Puck remained in each other's arms at the front.

"_**Don't do wasting your emotion. **_

_**Lay all your love on me. **_

_**Don't go sharing your devotion. **_

_**Lay all your love on me.**_"

The girls sang back, sinking into their partner's arms, while they sang. Tina perched herself on Artie's lap, singing happily to him.

"_**Don't go wasting your emotion. **_

_**Lay all your love on me. **_

_**Don't go sharing your devotion. **_

_**Lay all your love on me.**_"

The others faded into the background, leaving Puck and Rachel on the stage in the spotlight, and he turned her slowly before picking her up in his sturdy arms, spinning her around.

When he set her back down, they sang into each other's eyes, oblivious to the people watching them ... almost forgetting that it was a performance, and not a private declaration between them.

"**Don't go wasting your emotion ...**

**Lay all your love on me.**"

The spotlight faded, and Rachel and Puck moved to separate sides of the stage for the next song to begin. The music picked up automatically, and Quinn, Britney and Santana walked forward, arm-in-arm in the center of the stage.

"My, my! At Waterloo Napoleon did surrender.

Oh yeah, and I have met my destiny in quite a similar way."

The three girls shimmied back and forth, flipping their legs in front of one another and moving side-to-side.

"The history book on the shelf,

It always repeating itself."

Everyone came in for the chorus, splitting from their pairs to come together as a group in the middle of the stage.

"**Waterloo - I was defeated, you won the war. **

**Waterloo - promise to love you for ever more. **

**Waterloo - couldn't escape if I wanted to. **

**Waterloo - knowing my fate is to be with you. **

**Waterloo - finally facing my Waterloo."**

Tina, Mercedes and Kurt stepped forward, finding each other in the middle while the others clapped along, bouncing to the beat.

"My, My! I tried to hold you back but you were stronger.

Oh yeah, and now it seems my only chance is giving up the fight."

Kurt stood between the two girls, swaying back and forth while they turned in circles.

"And how could I ever refuse?

I feel like I win when I lose!"

"**Waterloo - I was defeated, you won the war.**"

The boys and girls swapped sides, skipping across the stage only to pull back to the middle, their excitement showing on their faces.

"**Waterloo - promise to love you for ever more. **

**Waterloo - couldn't escape if I wanted to. **

**Waterloo - knowing my fate is to be with you.**"

Rachel smiled up at Puck, singing the next line with him.

"_**And how could I ever refuse?**_"

Finn and Quinn took the next line without missing a beat.

"_**I feel like I win when I lose!"**_

They formed a staggering line with their partners, theirs hands raising above their heads to link with each other.

"**Waterloo - I was defeated, you won the war. **

**Waterloo - promise to love you for ever more! **

**Waterloo - couldn't escape if I wanted to. **

**Waterloo - knowing my fate is to be with you! **

**Waterloo - finally facing my Waterloo.**"

They came back together as a group, forming a straight line, facing the audience as everyone clasped hands with the person beside them, moving to the front of the stage.

"**Waterloo - knowing my fate is to be with you! **

**Waterloo - finally facing my Waterloo!**"

They finished by throwing their hands into the air, the music stopping abruptly as they concluded their performance.

A second passed, and then the auditorium erupted.

Rachel smiled at her fellow glee members, pleased and excited with the response they were getting from their peers.

Mr Shuester smiled up at them from where he stood in front of the stage, Miss Pilsburry standing right next to him, clapping away excitedly.

Principal Figgins clapped whole-heartedly, and even Ms Sylvester looked impressed.

They exited the stage after a bow, and Rachel jumped into Puck's arms excitedly.

"That was such a rush!" she told him, her body jittery.

He smirked into her ear, hugging her back. "That it was."

"You were amazing!" she told him honestly.

"You weren't so bad yourself," he commented, setting her back down to give her a proper kudos.

"Keep the PDA to a minimum, people," Kurt commented. "This is a school function, after all, and if I'm not getting any, nobody is."

Quinn and Rachel smirked, and all four Cheerios leaned forward to give Kurt a kiss on either cheek.

He came away plastered with lipstick, but smiling nonetheless.

* * *

Puck drove Rachel home after the talent show, and they were both grinning like fools. Puck's was much less toothy than hers, but present just the same.

"You know, if someone had told me a couple months ago that my life would be this perfect, I would have laughed in their face," Rachel confessed, glancing over at him. "Thank you."

He gave her a confused look. "For what?"

She smiled. "For being you."

He shrugged. "It's a fairly easy task."

She rolled her eyes lightly, leaning over in her seat to kiss him.

He responded quickly, like always, but something was different about this kiss.

She leaned back, her eyes hazy and loving.

"What?" he asked her, trying to identify the look in her eyes. It was a new one.

She glanced at the tree beside her window. "Think you can climb that thing?"

He looked over at it. "Probably. Why?"

She grinned shyly, but spoke with courage. "Meet me up there in five minutes?"

His eyes widened after a moment. "Are you sure?"

She nodded. "I've never been more sure of anything, Noah Puckerman." She turned to exit the truck, but he placed a hand on her arm.

"You're not like other girls, Rachel Berry," he told her, pulling her back to him for another deep kiss.

She smiled into her kissed, gazing over at him as she slid out of the truck. "You're not like other boys."

She closed the truck door, backing up the sidewalk to her front door.

She held up five fingers, motioning to her bedroom window, and entered her house.

He drove the truck around the corner, turned off the ignition, pocketed his keys, and ran to the tree outside her window, only tripping once. Maybe twice.

But could you blame him?

* * *

_The end. _

_There. I shall leave the love scene to your imaginations, but don't worry ... the spin-off will mostly likely be rated M. _

_I hope it was a good ending to the story, I was almost going to make two separate chapters for the game and the talent show, but I think they worked out well together. _

_I hope you guys will read the next Glee fics I post, I'll try to get them out soon. _

_Reviews are highly appreciated, positive or negative. _

_Until next time ...! _


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